It is worthwhile to read the speeches given by President Obama, PM Netanyahu, and President Abbas at the UN. These speeches are a window into how each leader perceives his nation’s position and narrative, and are crucial in understanding the varying sides of the debate over statehood.
Spotted by Daniel Lubetzky, by Adeena Schlussel
Settlements are a HUGE obstacle to achieving a resolution to the conflict. Daunting. Must be condemned.
But this, below, is the biggest obstacle – Palestinians’ refusal to come to terms with a finality of the conflict and the need to accept co-existence with Israel as a Jewish State (or pluralistic homeland or whatever you want to call it as long as you don’t delude yourself trying to think you will destroy it in stages). Without that, no change will come, and no peace or prosperity or safe or quiet future for either side will come.
Thomas Friedman’s column addresses the exact concerns that haunt the Middle East peace process today. It is crucial for both sides to make compromises in the negotiations; instead of making speeches that delineate what’s in their own country’s best interest, Netanyahu and Abbas must make some concessions in good faith. Netanyahu must fully freeze the settlements; Abbas must recognize that Israel will be the homeland of the Jewish people. If these leaders do not look to acknowledge each other, this peace process will crumble, and there will be devastating, reverberating effects that reach far beyond the immediate region.
Spotted by Daniel Lubetzky, by Adeena Schlussel
I received this email from Gidi Grinstein, who I consider to be one of the brightest people I’ve ever met, and certainly one of the most widely respected Israeli thinkers. His Reut Institute firmly supports a two-state solution, and yet he has come to believe that can only come about through coordinated unilateralism because both the Israeli and Palestinian governments have structural, constitutional, and leadership impediments to pass through what would be necessary on either side to achieve a negotiated agreement. Read his entire note:
Dear friends and supporters,
This email introduces Reut’s most recent strategic framework on the diplomatic and political opportunity that faces Israel in the United Nations this week, as an outcome of the Palestinian motion to recognize the Palestinian Authority as a state and accept it as a full member-state of the United Nations (Click here).
The Reut team, and specifically Roy Keidar, Reut’s new CEO and former Legal Advisor of the Israel’s National Security Council, and I, have been working hard behind the scenes for the past months, weeks and days, to introduce these ideas to top decision-makers, as well as to prepare for the aftermath of this Palestinian UN motion, which may include renewed efforts to de-legitimize Israel. We are now in NYC in part for this reason.
In a nutshell, we believe that Israel can leverage the Palestinian motion and pin down the principle of two-states-for-two-people, which has been a central objective of present and past Israeli governments. This will allow Israel to manage the process of establishing a Palestinian state in optimal conditions that not only address its major security and diplomatic concerns, but also allow for diluting Palestinian refugeeism and strengthening the status of Jerusalem as Israel’s capital. These achievements are conditioned on Israel making a credible win-win offer to the Palestinians so that they too have historic achievements. These ideas are detailed in our paper.
For the past five years and since Hamas electoral victory in January 2006, Reut has consistently argued that ‘constructive and coordinated unilateralism’ is the only viable path for political progress between Israelis and Palestinians toward security and coexistence, and that all attempts to negotiate comprehensive agreements are unfortunately doomed to fail, as the case has been.
Therefore, we concluded a few years ago that the establishment of a Palestinian state would have to be through an act of declaration and recognition, which is exactly what is unfolding in the United Nations. Hence, Israel’s opportunity this week to create a political breakthrough, which is a win-win and good for the Palestinians as well.
It is no coincidence that de-legitimizing groups such as the Electronic Intifada are quoting Reut in their fight against the Palestinian motion in the UN (click here), as they principally oppose the Two-State Solution or any motion that explicitly or implicitly recognizes the right of the Jewish people to self-determination.
In the coming few days, we will send you a more comprehensive overview of the recent history that led to this milestone, covering Reut’s different efforts for the past seven years.
With best wishes of Shana Tova,
Gidi
OneVoice was busy on the Hill this week, as Youth Leaders Eyal and Obada discussed their work to support a two state solution. Ambassador Philip Wilcox moderated the panel as they moved to discuss the Palestinian bid for statehood at the UN, and the event was covered by C-Span.
Spotted by Daniel Lubetzky, by Adeena Schlussel
This article dissects the mixed emotions attached to the upcoming UN Vote for Palestinian Statehood, as described by Uri Avnery, and lays out the potential that this vote can achieve.
Spotted by Daniel Lubetzky, by Adeena Schlussel
This article is worth reading as it delineates the seven main threats that Israel is currently facing, according to former National Security Council anti-terrorism chief Richard Clarke, foiled by Efraim Halevy’s view that with compromise, Israel will be able to achieve many of her goals despite the abounding threats.
Spotted by Daniel Lubetzky, by Adeena Schlussel
According to Gershon Baskin in his recent Jerusalem Post Column, the current status of Israel- Egyptian relations indicates that there is a long, but necessary haul to reach Israeli-Palestinian peace. From Baskin’s experiences, it seems that attaining Israeli-Palestinian peace will also mend relations between Israel and other countries of the Arab world, and can be achieved by building “stronger bridge, not higher walls.”
Spotted by Daniel Lubetzky, by Adeena Schlussel
The following article by Efraim Halevy is worth a read, as it delineates a viewpoint of givens to accept when thinking about the Israeli- Palestinian conflict, as well as a mindset that Israel should adopt to foster peace. Because the Halevy believes that a permanent solution to the conflict would be best, but is not a possible outcome at present, he posits how to accept basic rights and coexist, as a temporary fix.
Spotted by Daniel Lubetzky, by Adeena Schlussel
This NYT Op-Ed was written by Ephraim Sneh, a former Labor Knesset member and Deputy Defense Minister who serves on OneVoice’s Board. This article is worth reading, as he represents the centrist pro-Israel and pro-peace progressive, but also harbors a protective view that can appeal to the majority of Israelis.