THE NOT-SO-SHOCKING FAILURE OF THE ROAD MAP
The massacre in the Cafe Hillel coffeeshop was simply the punctuation mark to the dismal failure of the "Road Map," process, begun with cautious optimism just months ago. The half-way reform of the PA led to a non-existent disarmament of Hamas, Islamic Jihad and al-Aksa, a therefore an inevitable new round of terrorism. The Road Map quickly degenerated into Oslo Redux, with Israel being pressured to make unilateral concessions in order to prop up a Palestinian partner who might someday be able to meet their obligations. In this case the Israeli withdrawals and limited prisoner releases served only to delay the inevitable failure of Abbas.
The "Road Map" initiative was laudable in that it addressed the fundamental flaw in the Oslo process - the lack of a functional Palestinian partner committed to the process. However, the cold, hard truth is that no matter how much Israel, the U.S. or the rest of the world wishes for there to be such a functional partner, one can not emerge from the shambles of post-Oslo Palestinian society, a society that far more radical and dysfunctional than before the disaster of Oslo.
In the end the only real hope for a lasting peace comes from a unilateral separation by Israel, and de-Palestinization of the process. The seperation wall should be built ASAP - roughly along the lines of the Camp David offer, and the settlements beyond the wall dismantled. To wait for a negotiated agreement to begin the needed process of disentangling the populations is a foolhardy stalling tactic that will only prolong the conflict.
In the meantime, with respect to the terror organizations, Israel should continue to do what it should have done long ago - give Hamas, Islamic Jihad and al-Aksa no respite. The targeting killings of terrorist leaders, "political" and otherwise are the most moral response to terror - they are the antithesis of the immorality of the attacks on women, children, shoppers and diners. Better Sheik Yassin make his long overdue appointment in hell than for a Palestinian child to go hungry in response to a fruitless effort to pressure the heartless Arafat and his cronies. There is nothing else Israel can do until a responsible Arab government takes over the responsibility for eliminating Palestinian terror.
Success in the long run requires moving past the fixation on a Palestinian state. The right of self-determination of the Palestinian populations of the West Bank and Gaza would be better addressed by returning them to rule by Egypt or Jordan, which for all their problems, are far more functional than any Palestinian government that could possibly emerge in the next two to three years. While Palestinian self-rule is a nice idea, it is secondary to the more important task of ending the Israeli occupation of Palestinian Arabs.
Unless the next "map", "plan", or "guide" thinks along these fresh lines, and does not try to build once more upon the rubble of Oslo, it will go the way of the roap-map - quickly into the recycling bin of diplomatic failure.
The massacre in the Cafe Hillel coffeeshop was simply the punctuation mark to the dismal failure of the "Road Map," process, begun with cautious optimism just months ago. The half-way reform of the PA led to a non-existent disarmament of Hamas, Islamic Jihad and al-Aksa, a therefore an inevitable new round of terrorism. The Road Map quickly degenerated into Oslo Redux, with Israel being pressured to make unilateral concessions in order to prop up a Palestinian partner who might someday be able to meet their obligations. In this case the Israeli withdrawals and limited prisoner releases served only to delay the inevitable failure of Abbas.
The "Road Map" initiative was laudable in that it addressed the fundamental flaw in the Oslo process - the lack of a functional Palestinian partner committed to the process. However, the cold, hard truth is that no matter how much Israel, the U.S. or the rest of the world wishes for there to be such a functional partner, one can not emerge from the shambles of post-Oslo Palestinian society, a society that far more radical and dysfunctional than before the disaster of Oslo.
In the end the only real hope for a lasting peace comes from a unilateral separation by Israel, and de-Palestinization of the process. The seperation wall should be built ASAP - roughly along the lines of the Camp David offer, and the settlements beyond the wall dismantled. To wait for a negotiated agreement to begin the needed process of disentangling the populations is a foolhardy stalling tactic that will only prolong the conflict.
In the meantime, with respect to the terror organizations, Israel should continue to do what it should have done long ago - give Hamas, Islamic Jihad and al-Aksa no respite. The targeting killings of terrorist leaders, "political" and otherwise are the most moral response to terror - they are the antithesis of the immorality of the attacks on women, children, shoppers and diners. Better Sheik Yassin make his long overdue appointment in hell than for a Palestinian child to go hungry in response to a fruitless effort to pressure the heartless Arafat and his cronies. There is nothing else Israel can do until a responsible Arab government takes over the responsibility for eliminating Palestinian terror.
Success in the long run requires moving past the fixation on a Palestinian state. The right of self-determination of the Palestinian populations of the West Bank and Gaza would be better addressed by returning them to rule by Egypt or Jordan, which for all their problems, are far more functional than any Palestinian government that could possibly emerge in the next two to three years. While Palestinian self-rule is a nice idea, it is secondary to the more important task of ending the Israeli occupation of Palestinian Arabs.
Unless the next "map", "plan", or "guide" thinks along these fresh lines, and does not try to build once more upon the rubble of Oslo, it will go the way of the roap-map - quickly into the recycling bin of diplomatic failure.
Labels: Israel
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