The point of Aaron Lerner's comments (immediately below) is that Israel and those who aspire to be her friends must finally take off the rose-colored glasses. It would be nice to think that the palestinians (or the majority of them, anyway) really want to make peace with Israel and that the obstacles to this happening can be defined and overcome. It would be nice because then all we have to do to achieve peace is to confront those with the power to remove the obstacles and say "do it!" And we would all prefer to live in a world in which such easy solutions are possible.
But we don't.
Aaron painstakingly points out, as he has done time and time again, that every Israeli concession is treated as an opportunity to exploit. Every easing of restrictions is used to move weapons, explosives and operatives into strategic positions. Every withdrawal and transfer of control to the PA creates a renewed safe house, safe village, safe town for the manufacture of bombs, the sanctuary of murderers and the launching of more attacks.
Without the latest IDF withdrawal from Bethlehem and closing of roadblocks, 20 more people would probably be alive today. Dozens of others would be going about their daily lives, oblivious to what didn't happen to the bus they were riding on Tuesday night, instead of lying in hospital beds.
Those who continue to call for Israeli gestures for peace must get that the problem isn't that Israel hasn't done enough. The problem is that nothing Israel does, short of voluntarily self-destructing, will ever be enough. The problem is that these "gestures" are directly responsible for the deaths of innocent people. So however well meant, comments like this are just plain wrong.
Unfortunately, Israeli governments have reacted to previous lulls in violence with complacency, instead of making dramatic but politically difficult gestures to advance cooperation with the Palestianians. Evacuating a significant settlement while the terror groups are being dismantled by Abbas with help from Israel would truly move things forward--showing that Israel is willing to make a major peace gesture while not under fire. Level of optimism of this scenario occurring: 0.
No. Unfortunately, Israeli governments have reacted to previous lulls in violence with naiveté, opening the doors for future, more ghastly terrorist attacks. Israeli governments have consistently failed to require that actual steps be taken to disarm and dismantle the terrorist infrastructure, trusting that somehow their sworn enemies would refrain from taking advantage of the opportunities offered. They don't. They won't.
Abbas has already made it clear that he has no intention of dismantling terrorist groups, so there's little point in discussing what Israel should or shouldn't do during that process. But "evacuating a significant settlement" while any part of the terrorist infrastructure remains will move nothing forward other than the goals of the terrorists.
Why is it so easy to forget that the original purpose of the settlements was defensive? That the Israeli government in the aftermath of the Six Day War offered to return the territories to Jordan and Egypt and Syria in exchange for peace and recognition of Israel's right to exist? The answer was the three nos: no negotiations, no peace, no recognition. Just more attacks, now originating in territory under Israel's control. The settlements were considered a buffer against such attacks. And they still operate as such, though now, of course, an ideological component has taken a firm foothold, as well.
So far, the path this 'Roadmap' has followed has been utterly predictable. Empty promises backed up with no action by the palestinians, followed by baseless demands for more and more concessions, Israel gestures met with scorn and derision and yet more demands, reorganization and rehabilitation of the terrorist organizations that Israel succeeded in weakening, empty threats and ultimatums, and more and more murder and mayhem. We've been here. We've done this. We used to call it 'Oslo.' How many times do we have to do it again?
