After the recent impasse in peace negotiations caused by Netanyahu’s continued settlement expansion, U.S. National Security Advisor James Jones visited the Palestinian territories and met with the president and prime minister of Israel. This demonstrates that Washington is still dedicated to the work needed to solve the Israeli-Palestinian conflict, and, especially after Jones’ confirmation, that President Obama is dedicated to the partition of the two countries.
Furthermore, this visit is also important because it precedes George Mitchell’s visit to the territories, set for the nineteenth of this month. This visit clears the way for the American mediator who disappeared for some time from the territory after heightened tensions between Israel and the Palestinian National Authority. The increase in instability was caused by the refusal of the extreme Zionists in government to stop settlement construction as a condition for new negotiations. These negotiations were intended to reach specific ends in a generally accepted period of time, and result in the partition of the two countries.
Therefore, we confirm that all of the parties welcome the American role in order to resolve the conflict. America plays an essential role because it has the tools needed to influence the occupying force. In fact, due to the strength of the strategic relationship between the two countries and the huge contributions provided by the U.S. to Israel, whether military, economic or political, the U.S. is capable of forcing the government in Tel Aviv to comply with those resolutions considered legitimate by the international community. These resolutions include Israel’s retreat from all of the occupied Arab territories according to the 1967 borders, which includes the Arab section of Jerusalem, and the incorporation of an independent Palestinian state with Holy Jerusalem as its capital.
In fact, the record of relations between the two countries contains many examples proving our case. First, President Eisenhower forced Ben-Gurion to retreat from Gaza after the Tripartite Aggression of 1956. Moreover, President Bush the father forced Yitzhak Shamir to attend the Madrid conference under penalty of withholding housing loan securities reaching $10 billion.
Therefore, if the Obama administration is truly serious about finding a fair resolution to the Israeli-Palestinian conflict, it must translate words into actions. It should take effective measures to force the occupying authorities to comply with the international vision and international law. Ending the construction of settlements and fully retreating from the Palestinian, Syrian and Lebanese occupied territories is the sole way to realize regional peace. The Israeli occupation is still the main cause of instability in the region as it has been for more than six decades.
It’s worth mentioning that King Abdullah II of Jordan has many times affirmed the importance of an American role [in Israeli-Palestinian negotiations] and has urged the U.S. administration to call for serious negotiations with decisive timelines to meet specific ends. These negotiations should result in the partition of the two countries, with an independent Palestinian state, covering the occupied territories according to the June 4, 1967 boundaries, with Holy Jerusalem serving as its capital and the return of refugees according to the specifications of the agreement. We indeed remember the first meeting of His Majesty with president Obama; he spoke for the whole nation, which agrees unanimously with the peace initiative designed to end the Israeli-Arabic conflict in exchange for a permanent and comprehensive peace.
In summary, we welcome the return of active American engagement in the region. We wish the U.S. administration would translate its words and shining slogans into action. It should take effective measures to force the occupying thugs to comply with the legitimate resolutions backed by the international community. The peace, which President Obama says is in the interest of the United States, will only be achieved by Israel’s retreat from all the occupied Arab territories, according to the 1967 borders, and the establishment of an independent Palestinian state. In fact, this is the sole way to restore American credibility, which was considerably damaged during the last several years.
Leave a Reply
You must be logged in to post a comment.