Tuesday, June 29, 2010

Peace Agreement Between Abbas And Israel? Here Are The Facts Obama Dare Not Face

Khaled Abu Toameh writes that:
The only way to move forward with any peace process is by insisting that the Palestinians first get their act together and end the infighting between the two Palestinian states. Perhaps before we search for ways to make peace between Jews and Palestinians, we need first need to find a way to achieve peace between Palestinians and Palestinians.
Until that time, Obama--in his single-minded push for peace--is ignoring a number of inconvenient truths about the current situation facing Abbas and the PA:

  • If Arafat refused to sign at Camp David without getting 100% of his demands, there is no way that Abbas can.

  • It is doubtful Abbas can get the majority of Palestinian Arabs living in refugee camps to relinquish the "right of return".

  • If Abbas were to sign a deal with Israel that excludes Gaza, he would be accused of making the split between the West Bank and Gaza permanent

  • Many Palestinian Arabs oppose the idea of a land swap that the PA is supposedly considering.

  • Considering the fact that Abbas and the Palestinian Authority cannot go to the Gaza strip--and have thereby lost direct control over 1.5 million Palestinians--and have limited control over the West Bank, it is doubtful if Abbas and Palestinian Prime Minister Salam Fayyad have the credibility and support necessary to sell Palestinian Arabs on a peace deal with Israel

  • Even if Abbas were to sign a peace treaty with Israel, he would not be able to enter Gaza to implement it or even sell it to the Palestinians living there.

  • For all intents and purposes, as a result of Palestinian in-fighting, they already have two states, in Gaza and the West Bank.

  • It is no longer clear that a majority of Palestinian Arabs support the idea of a two-state solution. Instead, many are beginning to believe that the one-state solution is preferable--not to mention that a third group still favors elimination of the Jewish state.
Does anyone believe for a moment that Obama will take note of the facts on the ground and change his policy accordingly?

That is why, even if Obama is successful in ramming some kind of agreement down Israel's throat, there can not be a real peace at this time.

But then again, real peace is not the goal, is it?

Technorati Tag: and and .

1 comment:

NormanF said...

No, its not. The world wants to get the "Palestinian issue" off its agenda and it could less whether or not it brings real peace to the region. It would be what the Russians call "pokazuha" - for show. Israeli Foreign Minister told Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov bluntly a Palestinian state is not possible by 2012. And it won't happen as long as every one keeps ignoring the basic facts that prevent one from ever being realized.