cross posted from TbT (Truth be Told) by Zvi Haris Green - http://wp.me/p3tFkj-N |
US Secretary of State, John Kerry’s
tireless efforts to energize a peace process between Israel and her Arab
neighbors seem destined for failure and only because of Mohammed Abbas’ refusal
to recognize Israel as the National State of the Jewish people. Such
recognition is fundamental to any just and lasting peace. Without it, there can
be no real peace. For the peace process to move forward, both de jure
and de facto recognition of Israel by the Arab world is essential.
How can the Arab leadership “sell” any
deal to their people if they, themselves, don’t believe the Jewish people have
a right to establish their National State within negotiated borders? What moral
right will they have to call on their citizens to lay down their arms? How will
they justify ending the hate speech, inflammatory rhetoric and incitement
against Israel? By not recognizing Israel’s right to exist as a National State,
Israel will continue to be perceived as an occupying power. Without de jure
recognition the peace process can’t survive. Hostilities and incitement will
resume immediately after any negotiated concessions are implemented.
We
have, of course, already been there.
On November 29, 1947, the United
Nations General Assembly adopted Resolution 181 calling for the establishment
of two National States in what remained of the British Mandate of Palestine.
The Jews implemented this resolution and established a state which guarantees
full civil rights to all its citizens regardless of race, religion or creed.
The Arabs refused to accept this resolution and declared war on Israel.
Following cessation of hostilities, Jordan annexed that part of the territory
not controlled by Israel – an act regarded as illegal by the international
community including the Arab League.
The Arabs never attempted to establish
an independent Arab state in these territories. They may not have been
satisfied with their slice of the cake, but, by the same token, the proposed
Partition Plan fell way short of Jewish aspirations after 78% of the territory
earmarked by the Balfour Declaration and endorsed by the League of Nations for
the establishment of a Jewish National State, was consumed by the Trans Jordan Protectorate
which later became the Hashemite Kingdom of Jordan.
If only the Arab world had a leader of
Nelson Mandela’s stature. Somebody who could appreciate the significance of a
historic reconciliation between Jews and Arabs. Imagine how many lives and how
much bloodshed and suffering could have been saved had the Arabs complied with
UN Resolution 181. Billions of dollars that could have been spent on education,
health and social services, were spent creating sophisticated military
infrastructures.
Why can’t the Arab
leadership get their act together and take the necessary decisions to enable a
lasting peace for all the peoples of the region?
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