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Gilead Sher
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Israel must act to separate from Palestinians

Op-ed: We should not depend on Palestinian unity government, but rather create the reality of two states for two people ourselves.

The reconciliation between Fatah and Hamas, followed by the establishment of the Palestinian unity government, has put Israel in quite a difficult situation. Once again it is reacting not initiating, isolated among the world's countries in its opposition to the reconciliation.

 

 

This time we are talking about the internal Palestinian arena, but as far as Israel is concerned, it's similar to its situation when it comes to other moves initiated by Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas in the international arena.

 

The main question was and still is what Israel should do now, in a responsible, controlled and sober manner, so that its borders surround a democratic and secure state with a Jewish majority, which will gain international recognition. Israel's wellbeing and national security and its Jewish, universal and moral basic values dictate a diplomatic solution to the Israeli-Palestinian conflict, but such a solution today appears further away than ever.

 

There is slim chance that a Palestinian government built on a Fatah-Hamas coalition will agree to Israeli proposals or American outlines rejected in the past by Yasser Arafat and Mahmoud Abbas. Besides, Israel today will also find it difficult to offer the comprehensive proposals it was willing to consider in the past in order to bring the conflict to an end through a permanent agreement.

 

Israel must now prepare a responsible plan for separating from the Palestinians, without the latter having power over Israel's future. It must present practical strategic alternatives, based on gradual progress, partial agreements and understandings, and independently initiated steps – hoping that they will in fact be coordinated – for the creation of the reality of two nation states.

 

Hamas' takeover of Gaza exactly seven years ago split the West Bank and the Gaza Strip – politically and territorially – into two separate entities. Now the Palestinian unity government and even the international community are expected to demand movement between Gaza and the West Bank, which is fixed in the agreements between Israel and the Palestinian Authority. Israel should demand as a precondition that the PA and its government take responsibility for the entire territory, including the Gaza Strip.

 

Hamas has its own military force, which uses violence and terror against Israel and against Israelis. The interim agreement from 1995, which applies to this very day, determines among other things, that "apart from the Palestinian police and Israeli military forces, no other armed forces will be established or operate in the West Bank or the Gaza Strip."

 

All Israel has to do now is to demand a full and strict implementation of these orders as a condition for cooperating with the unity government.

 

Finally, it seems that the United States, following in the footsteps of Russia and the European Union, once again does not see the demands the Quartet set for Hamas (recognizing Israel, honoring past agreements and renouncing violence) as preconditions for talking to the organization.

 

The Israeli government must insist that these demands are fulfilled. There is no room for Israeli resentment and opposition towards the reconciliation between Fatah and Hamas. Israel has well-established demands and if it presents them properly to the Palestinians and in the international arena, its stance will be justified and valid.

 

And in any event, Israel must not make itself dependent either on the internal reconciliation in particular or on Palestinian moves in general. Israel must aim to separate from the Palestinians and initiate a reality of two states for two people – whether through negotiations, if its basic demands for their resumption are fulfilled, or independently.

 

Continuing the status quo is not good for Israel. The processes going on both around us and within Israeli society are dynamic in nature, and some of them are irreversible.

 

The government should look into developing a policy that creates a desirable outcome for Israel, through partial agreements, transition periods, and even an independent separation into a temporary border that it determines, which would run along the security fence or slightly eastward.

 

This is what should be done if it turns out that there is no real partner for any agreements in the new Palestinian government.

 

Gilead Sher heads the Center for Applied Negotiations (CAN) and is a senior research fellow at the Institute for National Security Studies (INSS) at Tel Aviv University.

 


פרסום ראשון: 06.12.14, 09:37
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