MY SAY: NETANYAHU’S TRAP FOR ISRAEL
Netanyahu’s Trap for Israel Ruth King
http://www.mideastoutpost.com/archives/exclusive-netanyahus-trap-for-israel-bu-ruth-king.html
“If the only negotiating stance of the Arabs concerns borders, fine. Let’s start with the borders of Mandatory Palestine before 1922.”
First the good news: Benjamin Netanyahu came across as a seasoned, serious statesman who stood fast against the President’s nasty speech calling for a return to the 1967 lines. “It will not happen” Netanyahu said with determination. He then addressed AIPAC and Congress and won a standing ovation from both political sides of the aisle.
So far, so good. Then he made rounds in the media and dazzled all, while President Obama flew to Ireland to reconnect with some remote relatives.
At least the president did not evoke a long lost Jewish connection. That was left to Valerie Jarrett, his very anti-Israel, very senior adviser, who disclosed that her great grandfather was Jewish. It was a Madeleine Albright moment. Unfortunately, it became a Madeleine Albright moment for Netanyahu as well.
Do you remember that under the severest pressure from Albright–or was it as a result of her considerable charm–Netanyahu abandoned Jewish claims to the cradle of our faith, Hebron? He ceded to the demands of Dennis Ross, Bill Clinton and Yasser Arafat and signed what became known as the Wye Plantation agreement.
As the French say: the more things change, the more they remain the same.
This time, at the height of his popularity, at the height of congressional support, at the height of dissatisfaction with the President’s anti-Israel tilt (not just from evangelicals and Republicans but such Democratic Party stalwarts as Harry Reid and Steny Hoyer), at the height of the media’s admiration, at a time when Americans are skeptical, to say the least, that the Palarabs can make peace–Netanyahu laid a deadly trap for Israel.
Here is what he repeated in one form or another several times:
“I am saying today something that should be said publicly by anyone serious about peace. In any peace agreement that ends the conflict, some settlements will end up beyond Israel’s borders. The precise delineation of those borders must be negotiated. We will be very generous on the size of a future Palestinian state. But as President Obama said, the border will be different than the one that existed on June 4, 1967. Israel will not return to the indefensible lines of 1967.
“As for Jerusalem, only a democratic Israel has protected freedom of worship for all faiths in the city. Jerusalem must never again be divided. Jerusalem must remain the united capital of Israel. I know that this is a difficult issue for Palestinians. But I believe with creativity and goodwill a solution can be found.”
What was Netanyahu thinking? What “creativity” for Jerusalem can do anything but put into jeopardy Israel’s claim to sovereignty? What land swaps will keep Israel safe? Which settlements will be removed? They are all bulwarks against an Arab onslaught from the elevations of Judea and Samaria.
Netanyahu invoked “demilitarization” as the solution for keeping Israel safe. Yet no one has warned more cogently of the emptiness of such nostrums. Here is what Netanyahu himself said in a May 12, 2002 speech to the Likud Central Committee: “[The Palestinian state] will demand all the powers of a state, such as controlling borders, bringing in weapons, control of airspace and the ability to knock down any Israeli plane that enters its area, the ability to sign peace treaties and military alliances with other countries. Once you give them a state, you give them all these things, even if there is an agreement to the contrary, for within a short time they will demand all these things, and they will assume these powers, and the world will stand by and do nothing but it will stop us from trying to stop them…We will thus have created with our own hands a threat to our very existence.”
What has changed since 2002? There is a Hamas statelet in Gaza thanks to Israel’s most recent venture in territorial withdrawals. The “Arab spring,” by making Egypt more likely to spring at Israel’s throat, has made the situation
worse still. So why is Netanyahu promoting the Palestinian state he has characterized as “a threat to our very existence?”
Netanyahu did invoke radical Islam and the dangers of a nuclear Iran. He did describe Israel correctly as a democracy and the only safe harbor for Jews in the world.
But then, unforgivably, on the enormously friendly territory of the Hannity show, he again walked into the deadly trap of his own making. He announced how generous Israel would be if Fatah just broke up with Hamas and “recognized Israel as a Jewish state.”
What? Is that all it takes? Therein is the trap for Israel. Sadat “recognized” Israel, signed a treaty, flouted it before the ink dried, and it is now being abrogated by the Egyptian populace and the Moslem Brotherhood.
At Oslo, Arafat “recognized” Israel and cemented his “recognition” with the longest spree of terror in Israel’s civilian centers.
King Abdullard of Jordan, whose father signed a treaty with Israel now blames Israel for all the world’s troubles. And, if you want to see real hatred of Israel, log into his pretty Queenlet’s blog.
What will Israel do if those who have never, not once in history, sustained any treaty which they signed among themselves suddenly decide: “Hey fellow terrorists, let’s pretend we recognize them and we’ll get the concessions we need in order to finish them off once and for all?”
It is a trap. And, equally bad, it is a travesty.
Netanyahu eloquently invoked the Ten Commandments and the Torah– those gifts from sages that were a model for decent and humane societies–a model too for America’s founding fathers. He lovingly described Israel as a freewheeling democracy. He solemnly spoke of the ancient patrimony and legacy of the land of Israel.
And these are the things that he would imperil for “recognition” from savages who hate Israel?
This is what Israel’s Prime Minister and de facto guardian of Jewish destiny should have said:
“We invite the Arabs who now live in Judea and Samaria to negotiate only those conditions of a civil society which include basic freedoms of speech and assembly so long as they are compatible with Israel’s security. The freedoms they will enjoy here are greater than those available to them in any Arab state. But read my lips. Independence will not happen.
“We do not need recognition of our right to exist from anyone, ever again. As I said to President Obama, Israel won’t get a second chance. The Arabs have had numerous chances since the Balfour declaration and every concession on our part has brought more demands and more terror. If the only negotiating stance of the Arabs concerns borders, fine. Let’s start with the borders of Mandatory Palestine before 1922.”
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