Considering that all these abuses – oppression of women, torture in prisons, persecution of the Christian minority – already exist in the Palestinian Authority (not to mention Hamas-ruled Gaza), a diplomatic lull could be a time, particularly from an American standpoint, to question whether the dogged pursuit of a Palestinian state holds up to scrutiny.

Instilling democracy in the Arab world may not have been realistic; creating another dictatorship – apart from the security threat it would pose to Israel – would appear worse than pointless.

Advertisement




Instead, a combination of Israeli assertiveness and U.S. benign neglect would convey the right messages to the Palestinians: that they, too, are subject to the cost-benefit calculi of human life and there are costs for clinging to radical positions rooted in a vision of Israel’s demise; and that their present situation of enhanced autonomy under Israeli security control is quite feasible for Israel, which has always had its own interests and attachments in the West Bank.

Advertisement

1
2
SHARE
Previous articleFor A Viable Modern Orthodoxy, Center Must Hold
Next articleCrossword Puzzle Solution – “The Hills” Of Jerusalem
P. David Hornik is a freelance writer and translator in Beersheba. His work is published in Israeli, Jewish, and general political media outlets; book “Choosing Life in Israel” was published by Freedom Press International in 2013.