For Once Peace Seems Possible
By Ryan Walsh (03/01/05)
In 1994, Mid-East peace was at hand. A conference comprising President Bill Clinton, Israeli Prime Minister Rabin, Jewish diplomat Shimon Peres, and Palestinian leader Yasser Arafat emerged from the Oslo peace process with an agreement. Under the Oslo accords, Arafat promised that the Palestinians would recognize and respect Israel’s peace and security. To demonstrate his sincerity, Arafat also agreed to annul the clauses in the “Palestinian Covenant” that called for the destruction of Israel and for the Jews to be driven into the sea.
Arafat did neither, and instead launched a bloody “intifada” in which thousands of Israelis were murdered.
In 2000, Mid-East peace was given another chance. Clinton and Arafat again congregated to negotiate a just and durable peace, this time with Israeli Prime Minister Ehud Barak at Camp David. Despite opposition from the Likud Party and the conservative elements in Israeli society, Barak presented Arafat with the most generous giveaway in the history of Arab-Israeli negotiations. Under the offer, Israel would turn over between 94 and 96 percent of the West Bank as well as the entire Gaza Strip. The Israeli government would then lay the foundation for a new Palestinian state, designating all of East Jerusalem as its capital. The world had never seen an offer so genuinely openhanded.
But Arafat walked away and ignited a second murderous intifada.
For years a solution to the conflict seemed inconceivable. Then, in the dawning hours of November 11, 2004, Arafat breathed his last. His rule, stained by innocent blood, had finally perished, while dreams of peace had been simultaneously reborn.
The scene today is encouraging. On February 20, the Israeli Cabinet finally ratified Prime Minster Ariel Sharon’s plan to withdraw unilaterally from the Gaza Strip and parts of the West Bank. At the same time, the Cabinet also authorized the completion of a security fence between official Israel and the West Bank. Israel has already erected fences in parts of the West Bank and in all of Gaza. As a result, terrorism in these areas has been brought to a complete halt.
Sharon appears to be preparing for a final two-state solution to the decades-old crisis. Even more unbelievable, new Palestinian leader Mahmoud Abbas is seemingly doing likewise. Having purged his ranks of extremists and terrorist ringleaders, Abbas has thoroughly distinguished himself from the image of his predecessor. Just last Sunday, after a deadly suicide bombing in a Tel Aviv nightclub, Abbas cracked down on the guilty party, which he expected was the terrorist group Hezbollah (of Iranian fame).
Israel continues to analyze carefully every movement and word of the Palestinians’ new leader, and it is true they have reason to tread with caution. Yet, Israel also realizes, as evidenced by the unilateral withdrawal of 25 settlements, that now more than ever in the small state’s history, tranquility and security are within a hopeful reach.
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