Benjamin Netanyahu created quiet a stir recently when he said that no Palestinian state would be created under his leadership. Many liberals will see Netanyahu as being a mean-spirited hard-liner, but in reality it's a matter of practicality. As the situation currently stands it is not in Israel's best interests for Palestinian state.
For one, a contiguous Palestinian state would come at the expense of a dis-contiguous Israel. The current proposal of merging Gaza and the West Bank would cut Israel in two. Incidentally this proposal is similar to the 1947 UN partition plan that the Arab's rejected at that time.
Second, such a Palestinian state would set Israel back to pre-1967 borders, nicknamed the Auschwitz borders because they are indefensible. A return to those lines would leave Israel with a waistline just nine miles (15 kilometers) wide at its narrowest point. A "two-state solution” would be a "final solution" for Israel.
Third, as seen when Israel evacuated Gaza, it has been used as a launching pad for attacks against Israel ever since. This problem would only be compounded with a Palestinian state.
Fourth, PLO Ambassador Maen Areikat and Palestinian president Mahmoud Abbas have publicly stated that no Jews would be allowed in a Palestinian state. So the half a million Jews living in the West Bank would have to be forcibly relocated elsewhere. In essence it would solve one refugee problem by creating another refugee problem.
In reality a two-state solution won't solve anything, and it certainly won't bring peace. There is a major misconception that the issue is about land, it's not. If it were true then the various proposals over the decades would not have been rejected by the Arabs including:The 1917 Balfour Declaration, the 1937 Peel Commission plan, the 1947 UN Partition, the Lausanne Conference of 1949, the 1955 Jordan Valley Unified Water Plan aka Johnston Plan, the 1967 President Johnson's "Five Principles of Peace", the 1969 Rogers Plan, 1978 Camp David Accords, the 1982 Reagan Plan, 1991 Madrid Conference, 1993 Oslo Accords, 1997 Hebron Agreement, 1998 Wye River Memorandum, 1999 Sharm el-Sheikh Memorandum, 2000 Camp David Summit, the December 23 Clinton Parameter plans, 2001 Taba Summit, 2003 Road map for peace, 2005 Agreement on Movement and Access (AMA), 2007 Annapolis Conference.
At it's core it's about Jewish hatred. Antisemitism runs deep in Arab culture and has been intertwined with Islam from the start. One of the first thing's Muhammad did when he came to power was to behead 600-900 Jews. The Koran refers to Jews as apes and pigs.
Currently a Palestinian state is not politically or economically viable. As it stands the Palestinians are economically dependent on others to survive, including Israel who is a major employer of Palestinian labor and a main trading partner. Even with financial aid from UNRWA and other countries, about one-fifth of the Palestinian population lives in poverty and has one of the highest unemployment rates in the world. -Source. Then there is the question of territory, even with Gaza and the West Bank combined it would not be able to absorb all the Palestinian Arabs from the surrounding countries.
The Palestinians authorities have been given billions over the years, by the U.S., by Israel, by the E.U., by other Arabs and what have they done with it all? Just one example, they spent millions of dollars over 5 years digging tunnels to launch terrorists attacks on Israel. When Israel turned over Gaza they left the greenhouses intact so the Palestinians could make money off the produce, but the Palestinians ended up destroying them as soon as Israel left.
According to the 2006 Pew Global, 68% of Palestinian Muslims say suicide attacks against civilians in defense of Islam are justified. This is unacceptable and the continual contesting of Israel's legitimacy which has led to perpetual conflict "must" be addressed before moving forward. A Palestinian state should be earned through good behavior, not as a reward for bad behavior. Until the Palestinians have shown they are willing to live in peaceful coexistence with a "Jewish" state then they they don't deserve a state of their own. By the way Jordan was actually meant as a Palestinian state and 70% of the population is made up of Palestinians.
For one, a contiguous Palestinian state would come at the expense of a dis-contiguous Israel. The current proposal of merging Gaza and the West Bank would cut Israel in two. Incidentally this proposal is similar to the 1947 UN partition plan that the Arab's rejected at that time.
Second, such a Palestinian state would set Israel back to pre-1967 borders, nicknamed the Auschwitz borders because they are indefensible. A return to those lines would leave Israel with a waistline just nine miles (15 kilometers) wide at its narrowest point. A "two-state solution” would be a "final solution" for Israel.
Third, as seen when Israel evacuated Gaza, it has been used as a launching pad for attacks against Israel ever since. This problem would only be compounded with a Palestinian state.
Fourth, PLO Ambassador Maen Areikat and Palestinian president Mahmoud Abbas have publicly stated that no Jews would be allowed in a Palestinian state. So the half a million Jews living in the West Bank would have to be forcibly relocated elsewhere. In essence it would solve one refugee problem by creating another refugee problem.
In reality a two-state solution won't solve anything, and it certainly won't bring peace. There is a major misconception that the issue is about land, it's not. If it were true then the various proposals over the decades would not have been rejected by the Arabs including:The 1917 Balfour Declaration, the 1937 Peel Commission plan, the 1947 UN Partition, the Lausanne Conference of 1949, the 1955 Jordan Valley Unified Water Plan aka Johnston Plan, the 1967 President Johnson's "Five Principles of Peace", the 1969 Rogers Plan, 1978 Camp David Accords, the 1982 Reagan Plan, 1991 Madrid Conference, 1993 Oslo Accords, 1997 Hebron Agreement, 1998 Wye River Memorandum, 1999 Sharm el-Sheikh Memorandum, 2000 Camp David Summit, the December 23 Clinton Parameter plans, 2001 Taba Summit, 2003 Road map for peace, 2005 Agreement on Movement and Access (AMA), 2007 Annapolis Conference.
At it's core it's about Jewish hatred. Antisemitism runs deep in Arab culture and has been intertwined with Islam from the start. One of the first thing's Muhammad did when he came to power was to behead 600-900 Jews. The Koran refers to Jews as apes and pigs.
Currently a Palestinian state is not politically or economically viable. As it stands the Palestinians are economically dependent on others to survive, including Israel who is a major employer of Palestinian labor and a main trading partner. Even with financial aid from UNRWA and other countries, about one-fifth of the Palestinian population lives in poverty and has one of the highest unemployment rates in the world. -Source. Then there is the question of territory, even with Gaza and the West Bank combined it would not be able to absorb all the Palestinian Arabs from the surrounding countries.
The Palestinians authorities have been given billions over the years, by the U.S., by Israel, by the E.U., by other Arabs and what have they done with it all? Just one example, they spent millions of dollars over 5 years digging tunnels to launch terrorists attacks on Israel. When Israel turned over Gaza they left the greenhouses intact so the Palestinians could make money off the produce, but the Palestinians ended up destroying them as soon as Israel left.
According to the 2006 Pew Global, 68% of Palestinian Muslims say suicide attacks against civilians in defense of Islam are justified. This is unacceptable and the continual contesting of Israel's legitimacy which has led to perpetual conflict "must" be addressed before moving forward. A Palestinian state should be earned through good behavior, not as a reward for bad behavior. Until the Palestinians have shown they are willing to live in peaceful coexistence with a "Jewish" state then they they don't deserve a state of their own. By the way Jordan was actually meant as a Palestinian state and 70% of the population is made up of Palestinians.
