By Jodi Levy
Sunday, June 3, 2007
The results are indisputable. Gaza has finally and unequivocally set the tone for what will become of any future Palestinian Entity if past mistakes continue to be pursued in future negotiations.
Terrorist government. Violent infighting. Unbridled anarchy. Overt missile manufacture and attack on Israeli civilian populations. Unchecked arms smuggling. Civilian unrest and instability. Daily death and destruction. Severe poverty. Vicious government sponsored anti-West incitement. Festering refugee camps minutes away from luxury high-rises.
Not exactly the results hoped for after decades of faith and goodwill on the part of Israel and the international community.
Gaza has been the willing beneficiary of all Western Diplomacy and generosity has had to offer so far. From vast sums of financial rehabilitation, foreign and Israeli healthcare, infrastructure and military equipment, to unilateral Israeli military retreat and evacuation of thousands of Israeli civilians, to a doomed attempt at Western-style democracy. All with continued disastrous and violent results, with no end in sight and no viable solution on hand.
All this without any sign of Palestinian leadership that might be considered even vaguely willing or able to control this increasingly dangerous downward spiral. Not surprising, since the current mayhem is being inflicted upon the Palestinians and Israelis by the democratically elected Palestinian Unity government.
No attempt to blame Israel's presence in Judea and Samaria can justify the violent chaos that has followed Israel's unprecedented civil and military withdrawal from all of the Gaza strip.
Anyone who looks at the current picture in Gaza honestly and objectively can only conclude that every international and Israeli effort to stabilize, support, assist and create Palestinian nationhood has resulted in the mess that is Gaza today. The conclusion must surely be that what was attempted has failed critically and can therefore not be applied again.
The Gaza Experiment has failed. Palestinian nationalism has been dealt a severe blow.
Unfortunately, the Israeli Government is not looking at the current picture honestly and objectively.
Recent comments made by government officials point to possible military support of Fatah to help overthrow Hamas via generous arms supplies. This scenario would be considered laughable if it wasn't made in the shadow of past grave errors, with extreme repercussions.
Distant memories of covert support for then-considered moderate Hamas in the first Intifada should reignite apprehension. Not-so-distant memories of bringing Fatal back into Israel's backyard with a fully fledged, well-equipped security force courtesy of Oslo should jolt the Israeli cabinet back to reality. The legacy of those ill-fated decisions is the staggering violence we are seeing in Gaza today.
It is now certain that giving Palestinians the means to fight themselves is a dangerous policy that must be strongly disavowed, both in Israel and by the International community.
Since Gaza has been the litmus test for Palestinian nationalism and autonomy, it is strikingly clear that the initiative has failed, and so have the Palestinian people. Given all the tools and support at their disposal, the world has the right to expect more and demand more from them in return.
A new diplomatic agenda is needed urgently before the only solution becomes a military one. It is painfully obvious that any Arab state between Israel and Jordan would be a danger to the region, the world, and to the Palestinians themselves.
Jordan's current re-entry onto centre stage of the Palestinian diplomatic fray should be leaped on eagerly by Israel and the world while the iron is hot.The Palestinians are clearly in need of a benefactor state which will not promote terror but transition.
Jordan, comprising 77% of the Mandate for Palestine, of which Israel holds 22%, is a prime candidate for such a role in resolving the re-allocation of the "occupied territories", the remaining one percent of former Palestine.
Jordan and Israel share a peace treaty, border, water supplies and economic interests. They also share the demographic challenge of the Palestinians. Let this be the starting point for a future diplomatic agenda and negotiations on behalf of the Palestinians. The time has come for the Jordan Option.
Jodi Levy is a copywriter, designer and mother of three who is deeply concerned about the global islamic threat and growing international complacency.
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