ISRAELI - PALESTINIAN STALEMATE AND THE RECENT YOUTH TERRORISM.

The sands of time are running out for a peaceful solution to the Israel - Palestinian dilemma. So much is happening in an ever changing world both positive but mainly negative in relation to the Jewish State. A stalemate exists in terms of negotiations between the two adversaries . Hopefully the most recent terrorist attacks by Palestinian youths will make both sides reexamine their options. These attacks have been followed by a right wing Israeli murder of a Palestinian family apparently in response to the terror. 

The Palestinians have won the political and public relations battle. Just one incident of the random violence perpetrated by Palestinian youths, that Israel has been subject to every day for the past three months, would have created a convulsive response in any European Union country. The Israeli bloodshed has been largely ignored and even the mass shooting in Tel Aviv with the gunman still on the loose was not covered one day after the carnage and Jay H. Ell had to read the Israeli press to learn the latest. The only feedback emanating from the Europeans of late, is to insist on the labelling of products emanating from Israeli settlements. The latter at the behest of Abbas.

And nothing changes the fact that the Palestinian and Hamas leaderships winning tactic is just simply to hang around long enough, while periodically sending suicide bombers and rockets into Israel. The current Palestinian strategy and Israel's continued expansion of settlements make a two state solution well nigh impossible. 

The Palestinians, however, might also take note of the fact that the Jews have been around for even a longer time than them and have resisted all attempts to wipe them off the face of the earth. In addition as matters stand at the moment Israel is still calling the shots. All of this proves nothing and does not alleviate  the stalemate. More significantly none of this lightens the seventy years of the average Palestinian’s misery nor does it allow Israelis to sleep more peacefully at night. 

CURRENT STALEMATE

Now there is a ton of blame to go around and Jay H. Ell is no  big supporter of Bibi Netanyahu and has castigated him for his insensitivity towards his own Arab citizens, his provocative settlement policy and for making no real attempt to break the logjam between Israel and the Palestinians. (Blog: Rabin 20 Years Later: So What is Netanyahu’s End Game?). By so doing he has given the Palestinians credibility and provided fodder for a coalition ranging from well meaning critics to anti semites to actively campaign for them. Then again Jay H. Ell has yet to be convinced that the Palestinians have ever had any intention to carry through to a two state solution. The responses to Ehud Barak and Ehud Olmert are more recent lingering concrete reminders that when push comes to shove they just push off. Not to mention how Hamas has repaid Ariel Sharon for his largesse for unilaterally handing over Gaza. 

ISRAELI RESPONSE TO ISRAELI TERROR 

The State of Israel operates in a different paradigm. Following the murder by Israelis extremists of a Palestinian family the full weight of the security forces and the law has descended on the perpetrators. There has been an outcry at two extremist Rabbis one of whom has been brought in for questioning and a 100 extremists have been taken into custody. Terrorism is neither sponsored or supported by the Israeli government as Netanyahu triumphantly exclaims. Naftali Bennett, the right wing leader of Orthodox Zionism who is the main mover behind the creation of settlements, has stated that Jewish terrorists can upend all his community’s efforts. This for Bennett represents brave leadership as he could have so easily fed into his base and ranted at the alleged mistreatment that the Sin Beth, the Israeli Security Service is allegedly subjecting the extremist detainees too. 

Looking at the International response it is understandable that Israel is incensed at the world’s failure to acknowledge the differing attitudes the two foes have to the rule of law. However justified and angry Israel’s protagonists may feel at the double standards the world judges the Israeli and Palestinian administrations it won’t make them any safer.

THE RECENT PALESTINIAN YOUTH ATTACKS AND THE RESPONSES

For the past three months Israel has witnessed attacks by Palestinian youths armed with knifes, potato peelers, axes and motor cars. They are daily occurrences and have resulted in twenty Israeli casualties and 120 Palestinian deaths.There is no political movement that the perpetrators belong to, no leader or any central body claiming responsibility for each action. Save notes such as that the perpetrators feel desperate and hopeless there is no clue as to what political point they are trying to make. There are entries in Facebook apparently but there an end. Both the Palestinian and Israeli sides are somewhat nonplussed by the phenomenon. Netanyahu has called this a new type of terrorism. He has maintained that there are no good terrorists and that they are all equally bad. He has argued that they are alined to Islamic Jihadism. However his security establishment disagrees with him arguing that the motives may in some instances be political but these are all personal unconnected attacks. Israel’s Minister of Public Security has confessed that these attacks are impossible to forestall. They are no cells to infiltrate, no phones to tap and the pool of possible assailants are as large as the number of frustrated Palestinians.

The Palestinians for their part have neither claimed ownership of the aggression or even supported it other than an Abbas statement maintaining that they were “justified” due to frustration at the lack of a two State solution. Hamas has not uttered a word. They cannot really need this disorganized amateur bunch going in on a daily basis killing themselves. At the end of the day these are not soldiers of the revolution. They are not committed suicide operatives where there is long preparation of the “martyrs” and a family buy in. There is not the inevitable sickening video prepared before death celebrating the glorious exit and the prospect of the seventy virgins. Neither are the perpetrators responding to an Intifada call. Inevitably they are lumped with Hamas who are not getting the usual bang for the buck for suicide attacks.These are young ordinary people committing homicide/suicide. Their kith and kin may well want to know sooner or later, as the numbers grow larger and larger, what is being done to end this impasse. 

YOUTH VIOLENCE SHOULD GIVE PAUSE TO BOTH ISRAEL AND PALESTINE

This has to give pause to the Israelis as to their attitude and policies at the moment. They can argue, “What can you expect from those who have from day one been taught in their homes, schools and in society to demonize Jews. They have been force fed the story of the Zionist imperialists taking their land”. Eighty percent of Palestinians, for example do not believe that Jews have any connection to Jerusalem.  All well and good but how does this explanation change the equation on the ground? Does the fact that none in their sane minds, can blame the Israelis for defending themselves help at the end of the day? The justification for self defence  does not break the logjam and bring normality one jot closer. 

In a rational world this should give pause to the Palestinians as well. These youths have not signed up to a recognized cause to fight the enemy. Rather they have made their feelings as to their own hopelessness known in a catastrophic fashion and as a personal statement. Obviously they don’t see a future in Hamas or Abbas anymore than they do in the Israeli government. Nor could they believe that those who purportedly represent Palestinian aspirations are able to provide any more than the futile same old same old. Otherwise why didn’t they pop across to Gaza or wait for the much promised Third Intifada? Or just opine in a suicide video, so favored by Hamas, that they are allied with the Hamas objectives. 

ISRAELI ALTERNATIVES

While holding one’s breath waiting for the Palestinian side to come to reality what is Israel going to do in the interim? They too can continue with the same old same old or they can move either to harden their current policy or make some attempt to convince the everyday Palestinians that they have more to offer them than their leaders premature path to nirvana.

1. Abandon the rule of law and democracy.

There has to be a temptation by the Netanyahu government to argue, “Should we just adjust to the Middle East we live in. It is impossible to maintain the rule of law and democratic rule which just ties one hand behind our backs while fighting those who have no respect for any of the norms of a Western liberal society.  Moreover our Western allies who should be supporting us are at best indifferent to our plight. On the contrary they blame us for the situation and repeatedly back Abbas and rationalize Hamas's barbarism. When we defend ourselves they maintain we are using exorbitant force.” 

In addition Israel has been greatly strengthened as a result of the internecine battle between the Shiites, lead by Iran, the fundamentalist ISIS Sunnis and the Gulf State Sunnis lead by Saudi Arabia. The latter are allied with Egypt and Jordan and this coalition together with Israel will be by far the dominant force in the Middle East. There is little doubt, for example that the Saudis will be ad idem in taking out Iran’s nuclear facilities here and now. The rest of the world will do nothing. Obama’s America will just condemn and in any case the next American President will be onsides with Israel if for no other reason then they haven’t the guts to take on the Saudis. 

As far as the internal situation is concerned the gloves can be taken off. A preventative detention act will see to it that those agitators within the country are locked up. There will be no surgical operations against Hamas, whatever is needed to take them out will be deployed…..

2. Maintain the status quo.

Plodding along as is is the easiest way out. There is no way that Abbas or Hamas pose a threat that cannot be contained is the conventional wisdom. The Israeli right can be mollified by giving them all the settlements they want. The Western world may squeal but Israel is still their only ally in the Middle East and at the end of the day America will still cover their backs. There can still be an informal relationship with the new Middle East allies and as far as the Israeli left is concerned the demographic is against them ever vetoing anything that the Netanyahu government wants to do. Netanyahu can then muddle along until such time the world comes to their senses and realizes that Israel is the only ally and supports them to manage their security.

3. Initiate projects to promote improved relationships between Israelis and Palestinians

To try rapprochement in a milieu where one’s main adversaries are inspired by a messianic mission to conquer or proselytize first the region and then the world to Islam is no easy task. For that is the constitutional aim of the fundamentalist Iranian rulers and their surrogates Hezbollah and Hamas. But there is little doubt, as the recent youth suicide behavior has indicated, that there is disillusionment with those approaches and it is Jay H. Ell’s belief that the Palestinian youths' futile violence is directed against both establishments. Abbas has lost support and why should the only alternative be Hamas? 

There are several initiatives to try and bridge the divide between the Islamic and Jewish worlds.  This movement has been given a major boost by the best selling work by Lord Rabbi Jonathan Sacks entitled, “Not in God’s Name - Confronting Religious Violence”. This major philosophical, educational and religious treatise emphasizes the commonality between all the monotheistic religions. It focuses attention on the importance of “love of the stranger” and it reinforces an earlier work of his entitled “The Dignity of Difference”. It cannot be a coincidence that following its publication in the United Kingdom the current UK Chief Rabbi has called for schools to educate scholars on Islam. His appeal was followed by the Head of British Muslim faith who called for his schools to teach Catholicism and Judaism. 

Initiatives can be at every level - business, charity, welfare, social just to name a few options. A determined effort needs to be made to treat Palestinians empathetically. The ordinary Palestinian has been manipulated by successive Muslim countries for generations to meet political agendas without any care as to their needs. Israel has, as yet, not successfully convinced anyone of their equal status. 

The Netanyahu Government's New Year move to alot 4 billion dollars to Arab housing and education with the object of closing the gap between Israel's minorities and the rest of society represents an important concrete and symbolic gesture in this regard. It is a great start.

THE CHOICE.

There is little doubt that whoever governs Israel will not easily abandon the rule of law. The unanimous response to the right wing murders of a Palestinian family tells it all. And if any further proof is needed the universal condemnation of Trump’s call to ban Muslims from the USA should reassure all that democratic ethos is alive and well. This particularly in the light that sixteen  Muslim countries ban Israelis from entry. 

There also has to be no doubt that carrying on as usual cannot result in a secure Israel. Similarly there is little mileage in hanging on to a victimhood bemoaning  the unfairness of it all. Remember Israel, on the one hand, has never been stronger and it can set an example to its new allies in the Middle East by positive behavior. There is little doubt too that they would applaud such progressive moves and make it far easier to openly ally themselves. In addition it might force the world to realize the legitimacy of the Israeli position and their bona fides in seeking a two state solution to the eternal problem. 

Initiatives of individuals, groups and organizations will need to pave the way and this might encourage the Israeli government to build on its latest initiative. It is to quote Mandela, "A Long Walk To Freedom" but it is worth it.