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THINK-ISRAEL |
Abba Eban, hardly a right-wing hardliner, once famously referred to the 1967 borders between Israel and its Arab neighbors as "Auschwitz borders." With Israel confined to those borders (at one point less than 10 miles wide), the Arabs controlled the mountain ranges that dominate all of Israel's population centers as well as the region's water supplies. Thankfully, Israel has not agreed to return to the Auschwitz borders.
But twenty years ago, Israel did agree to what I shall call the "Oslo Final Solution." In an act of monumental stupidity, Israel invited the PLO and its genocidal wannabe leader, Yasser Arafat, to set up shop in the so-called West Bank as a prelude to ceding the area to him. In effect, Israel was agreeing to eventually return to the Auschwitz borders.
Events since the infamous handshake on the White House Lawn (between Arafat and Rabin) have demonstrated conclusively that an Israeli withdrawal from Judea and Samaria (the biblical names for the West Bank area) would indeed represent an enormous, and likely irreversible, step toward the Arab-envisioned final solution to the Arab-Israel conflict — namely, the destruction of the Jewish State. The Israeli withdrawals from Lebanon and Gaza have resulted in enhanced Arab aggression and intransigence and provide an unmistakable model for the horror that would rain down on Israel should Fatah/Hamas take control of Judea and Samaria.
Despite the self-evidence of this assessment, Israeli leaders continue to pursue the chimera of a "two-state solution." Several (but especially Barak and Olmert) have offered the Palestinian Arabs virtually all that they might have expected under the Oslo accords. But in their blind hatred for the Jewish State, in their revealing lack of interest in setting up a new state of their own, and in their undying expectation that the Jewish state cannot hold out indefinitely, they have spurned the offers and continued to pine for the great Götterdämmerung that they expect must inevitably occur.
It is time for Israeli leaders — indeed, for the whole nation — to recognize the futility of Oslo, declare it a dead letter, and pursue a completely different path. It is time for Israelis to recognize reality, stop acting like they lost all the wars that they have won, and initiate a new strategy.
Toward what goal? Well, the goal depends on the aspirant:
Nothing I can say will dissuade the Arab/Muslim world from its genocidal intentions toward Israel. And sad to say, history has shown that no non-suicidal Jewish/Israeli policy will appease its non-Muslim opponents. History also reveals that while much of Israeli policy is motivated by its desire to please its friends around the world, the results have often endangered the State.
So what are Israel's options? It can continue to perform the same ridiculous Oslo dance that it has choreographed for the last twenty years. It should be evident that such a course of action is pointless, fruitless, and dangerous. Israel could also "surrender" — i.e., unilaterally withdraw from Judea and Samaria. Anyone who believes that this would not be a suicidal act is hopelessly naïve. What Israel should do is abrogate Oslo, cite its right to do so because the Palestinians have repeatedly and flagrantly violated their obligations under the accords, and declare itself sovereign in Judea and Samaria.
Now, Israel can do this in two ways: (i) offer all the Arab residents Israeli citizenship or (ii) not. Either way, Israel will be condemned and vilified, and its incorporation of the disputed territories will not be recognized internationally. But consider the Golan Heights. Israel annexed it thirty years ago and met with the exact same kind of reaction. But today — especially in light of events in Syria in the last two years — who doesn't doubt the wisdom of the move? The Golan is part of Israel, and soon the world will recognize it as a fait accompli — if it doesn't already. It may take fifty years, but the world will eventually accept the new borders of Israel when Israel finally recognizes its only sensible course of action.
The choice on Arab citizenship is tricky. The temptation is to allow the Arab residents of Judea and Samaria to keep their Jordanian passports and not offer them Israeli citizenship. To do that will lend credence to the current but bogus charge that Israel is an "apartheid state." To have more than 20% of a population as permanent resident aliens is not a tidy state of affairs. But, critics argue, the alternative course is far worse. Granting citizenship would render Israel two thirds Jewish and one third Arab. Moreover, the balance would shift to 50-50 or worse within a generation. It would then be impossible to retain the Jewish character of the state, or else Israel would truly become a state in which a near or actual majority is deemed second-class citizens.
But here's the place where conventional wisdom is wrong. The demographics have shifted dramatically in the last generation. The Arab fertility rate has plummeted (from approximately 9 children to roughly 3.5), and the Jewish rate has grown steadily (to slightly over 3) — to the point that the rates are virtually equal. Moreover, the trend continues, and so even with annexation and citizenship, the breakdown might be more like 75/25 in a generation.
Well one could argue that even a 25% Arab minority — with or without full rights — poses a threat to the Jewish character of the nation. Perhaps. But that is the issue that should be debated — not which minuscule pieces of land should be swapped in a fictitious peace agreement between Israel and Fatah that is never going to happen.
Israel needs to break out of the grip of the Oslo Final Solution. If the Jewish nation would openly and seriously contemplate and debate the application of Israeli law to Judea and Samaria, then the grip would be broken. Only then might the Arab world consider accepting the existence of a Jewish state in its midst and abandon its homicidal dream of absorbing or obliterating it.
EDITOR'S NOTE:
Some of the comments that added useful information.
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Token I lived in Israel for many years, and carry duel citizenship. I have served in the armed forces of both the US and Israel, in infantry. I have had close, and eye opening, relations with Israeli Arabs. There is only one viable solution to the Arab/Israeli conflict, and as unpleasant, and "unfair" as it may seem, it is this: Drive ALL Arabs, even those who are citizens, and loyal to Israel, over the border to Jordan, or Egypt, or elsewhere, including the entire population of Gaza. They are the implacable enemies of Israel (and ALL mankind, for that matter), and will NEVER tolerate peace with a non-Muslim state on land that they consider to be Islamic by right of conquest (note that they still regard Andalusia, as Muslim lands). Since this is the case, and always will be, it is better to defend against them when they are on the other side of the border, and not in the midst of the Israeli population. Druze, Circassians, Christians, and of course Jews, may remain, and hold citizenship. Then prepare to fight the Arabs, and their venal allies, for half of forever, and go on with life while doing so. It's not pleasant, but it's the only realistic way to go. As for international opinion, it is to be ignored. If international opinion ruled, let us be honest, there would be NO Jews. Let us also, at this point, lay the Oslo Accords squarely at the feet of the arrogant narcissist, who, in secrecy, and with complete dishonor, contrived them: Shimon Peres, may he rot in hell! He is the author of all the miseries, and deaths caused by these suicidal "Accords". He has outlived his honor by over half a century. May his soul suffer every anguish that he has caused. |
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dougjmiller Ron, it's very refreshing to hear the truth about the genocidal Arab/ Moslem war against Israel and the Jewish people. The Arab/ Moslem goal is the annihilation of Israel and the extermination of the Jewish people. They don't want a 22nd Arab/ Moslem controlled country. They want to eliminate the one and only Jewish state. |
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allen7777 The issue for Israel has never been peace, but her unwillingness to acknowledge her enemies' commitment to aggression. So she loses by negotiations, instead of preserving her sovereignty. Were she to acknowledge that her weakness is the pretense that man is good, Israel could strive to survive by fighting the war of ideas, and resisting the aggression of the Arab-Muslim bloc and its allies. However, Israel will continue to engage in denial instead of treating her survival as non-negotiable. Despite her greatness in economic and military development, she is not yet ready for self-government. Hopefully, if she survives the immediate challenges to her survival, Israel can replace her social-democratic aims by those befitting a Jewish state, which is more in line with the principles of our Declaration of Independence. |
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gafferguy As long the White House bungler is around, the Israelis must make conciliatory noises about a two-state solution, knowing full well this will never happen. They know that Heinz-Kerry is a fool with no real power to take action, so they just muddle thru like they've been doing since the beginning. Let's hope Hillary doesn't get elected in '16 because that means we'll have a Muslim spy running State = Huma Abedin. God forbid. |
Ron Lipsman is Professor of Mathematics and Former Senior Associate Dean at the College of Computer, Math & Physical Sciences, University of Maryland. Contact him at ronlipsman@comcast.net. This article appeared June 30, 2013 in American Thinker and is archived a http://www.americanthinker.com/2013/06/its_time_to_junk_oslo.html.