Brussels, 15/06/2009 (Agence Europe) - The Israeli prime minister, Benjamin Netanyahu, on Sunday unveiled his plan for the resumption of the peace process, in response to pleas and pressure for him to do so, particularly from America, but also from Europe. For the first time, he has acknowledged the right of the Palestinians to create their own state, but this offer comes with conditions which practically denude it of all substance. "The peace process was progressing at snail's pace. Netanyahu has just put the snail on its back", was the reaction of Saeb Eraqat, the Palestinian negotiator-in-chief for the peace process (our translation). He was referring to the details of the Israeli proposal whereby any future Palestinian state would have to be demilitarised, and thus deprived of the essential building blocks of sovereignty.
This is Mr Netanyahu's response to international pressure which focused on this issue of "two states" coexisting in peace and security and on freezing the colonisation policy. This policy, which has come in for criticism from the international community, has parcelled up the West Bank, which no longer has any territorial continuity, due to the fact that high separation walls have been built, isolating Palestinian areas and settlements. Although, theoretically, he is responding to international expectations, and those of American President Barack Obama in particular, on the issue of the two states, the Israeli prime minister has stipulated conditions which are likely to make his peace plan unworkable. It has been described as unacceptable by the Palestinians and the Arab states. Mr Netanyahu's plan also calls for the Palestinians to recognize Israel as a Jewish state - not to be confused with a "Hebrew state", as it brings with it the recognition of the exclusively Jewish nature - from a religious point of view- of the state of Israel. This position is supported by the Israeli extreme right and, in particular, the foreign affairs minister, Avigdor Lieberman, who was in Luxembourg on Monday to attend the session of the EU-Israel Association Council, would be denying the status of nearly a million Arab citizens of the country- Muslims and Christians- some of whom serve in the army or are members of the Knesset. The Israeli prime minister also intends to close once and for all the debate on status of Jerusalem, which would become the exclusive and indivisible property of Israel. While promising an end to settlement, he would not halt “natural” development - a notion that all found ambiguous. He said, too, that no Palestinian refugee would have the right to return, stating that the issues would have to be resolved “outside of Israel”. This is great concern to many countries of the region, in particular Lebanon and Jordan, which do not want to become substitute homelands for the Palestinians. He also called on Fatah to take Gaza back from Hamas.
“Netanyahu's remarks have sabotaged all initiatives, paralysed all efforts being made and challenges the Palestinian, Arab and American positions,” regretted a Palestinian Authority spokesman. (F.B./transl.rt)