The settlers trying to convey to the world that such a large number of people cannot be evacuated
Photo: Gil Yohanan
Israeli concessions will not remain on paper
Op-ed: One horrible day, the American empire which we depend on will decide that 100,000, 200,000 or 300,000 people must evacuate their homes in Judea and Samaria.
The mere existence of the document
that my colleague Nahum Barnea brought from Washington is important, but it's not the most important thing. The most important thing is to understand that what is described in this paper will not remain on paper, but will eventually materialize. When? In a year from now. Or in five years. Or in 10 years.
But the world, and mainly the United States, which is responsible for our existence, don't want it. The foundations of the document from Washington are almost identical to the American statement which has been repeated since the last bullet was shot in the Six-Day War.
Let there be no misunderstandings: According to the way I was raised at home, I would rather never see the content of that wretched paper executed. I would rather not see Israel returning to borderlines based on the 1967 borders, Jerusalem being divided and refugees crossing the Green Line. I want the people of Israel to sit peacefully under their vine and fig tree, and the hundreds of thousands of residents and dozens of communities beyond the Green Line to do the same. After 2,000 years of exile and endless suffering, we deserve it.
Secret Negotiations
Ariela Ringel Hoffman
Op-ed: If this were a sane, less violent election campaign, Netanyahu's secret peace offer could have actually been seen as a sign that not all hope is lost.
This is exactly what they think. This is exactly what they have been saying for decades. We are disregarding them in the name of the Land of Israel, the love of Israel and the Torah, but what is written in the document is exactly what will happen.
Judea and Samaria. The evacuation plans are already lying somewhere in the Pentagon drawers (Photo: AP)
For the Americans, we are like a medium-sized city in the US. They have evacuated cities within hours following floods and storms. And the same will happen on the horrible day in which the Americans decide that 100,000, 200,000 or 300,000 people must evacuate their homes in Judea and Samaria.
The settlers are trying to frighten us with growing numbers of residents, of houses being constructed. They are trying to convey to the whole world that such a large number of people cannot be evacuated. I wish they were right.
The Americans may be failing vis-à-vis Iran and may have failed in Iraq and in Afghanistan, but they are a mighty world power, an empire, and Israel depends on them in everything. That's why they are chuckling deep down in their hearts, and the evacuation plans are already lying somewhere in the Pentagon drawers.
Once, during a tour of the US Army, we learned that they have a language school where they send officers to learn Kyrgyz, Swahili, Turkmen and other languages. "When will you need them?" we asked curiously. "We may never need them," the guiding officer replied, "and we may need them in 20 years." They have a lot of time and a lot of money. If and when they decide, the earth will move under our feet, while they won't feel a thing. That's the Americans, for better or for worse.
I am under the impression that Palestinian Authority Chairman Mahmoud Abbas is in no rush, because he and his people are convinced that time is on their side. The world is against us and in favor of the Palestinians. That's why he is acting the way he is and waiting for the world, especially the Americans.
The national camp 'princes'
People are talking a lot these days about the "princes" of the national camp, who inherited their fathers who were persecuted by the Mapai government, as if they had come to avenge their parents' deprivation and the arrows of ridicule fired at them for generations.
Well, as one of those "princes," I must say that the kingdom of "princes" was only established so that the national camp's leadership will not fall into the hands of people of Sephardic descent after Menachem Begin's retirement – in other words, in order to prevent David Levy from taking over instead of the admired Irgun commander.
All the other reasons were born after the "princes" were invented. They wanted to follow in the footsteps of their fathers, who knew how to take advantage of the Sephardic members' enthusiastic support without giving them proper representation in the party's institutions. Menachem Begin and Jabotinsky's other students were experts on that.
The fact that history took a different path does not make this thesis pointless and irrelevant. That's how it began. And the rest, as they say, is history.
