We would laugh if the matter were light; but we cannot afford the luxury of crying, of national self-pity. The matter is too serious.
Laughable is the idea, now promulgated by certain Palestinian leaders, that since negotiations with Israel are not happening note the passive voice its time for an international approach. Read: an imposed settlement.
What is laughable is the implication that an international approach is inevitable because, after all, negotiations are not happening. Read: Palestinians refuse to negotiate. The cause of the suspension in negotiations is a conscious Palestinian decision; but, because its not happening, the international community must get involved.
This is not mere theory. For the first time in 18 years, Russia recently relaunched an Arabic version of Moscow News. Russia also sponsored a two-day conference on the shores of the Dead Sea. The Russian organizers invited Mideast experts from Russia and Bahrain, Egypt, Iran, Iraq, Israel, Jordan, Lebanon, the State of Palestine, Saudi Arabia, Syria and Turkey to discuss a comprehensive Mideast settlement.
To be sure, the Obama administration bears much of the responsibility for foolishly promising the Palestinian a precondition to negotiations that no American president (or anyone else) ever promised: an Israeli cessation in settlement-building. George W. Bush, Bill Clinton, George H. W. Bush, Ronald Reagan, Jimmy Carter, Gerald Ford, Richard Nixon no American president ever told the Palestinians that before they came to the table, Israel would stop all settlements. That dubious distinction belongs to Barack Obama.
An international approach to the conflict means pressure on Israel. Pressure to internationalize Jerusalem. Pressure to withdraw from the entire West Bank, including its highlands, which are critical for Israeli security. Pressure to tolerate a Hamas government to the south, and a Hezbollah government to the north, both of which prepare for Israels destruction. Pressure to free convicted murderers from jail. The list goes on. Peace would not result.
Of course, the US would have to join the EU, Russia and the UN in any international approach. Which only reemphasizes the critical importance of American Jewry continuing to educate each and every member of Congress, via AIPAC and individual efforts. The current lull in the Israeli-Palestinian conflict should fool no one that better days ahead are automatic.
