November 23, 2003
ALL THINGS COME TO HE WHO WAITS:
Sharon floats plan that might include eventual dismantling of small settlements (RAMIT PLUSHNICK-MASTI, November 23, 2003, Associated Press)
Prime Minister Ariel Sharon is floating a plan to draw a border with the Palestinians and dismantle small Israeli settlements if there is no progress on a U.S.-led peace plan, newspapers reported Sunday.The plan was leaked at a time when Sharon faces growing criticism at home. Several former security chiefs have said he is stalling on renewing peace talks because he wants to avoid making concessions and his support is slipping.
Sharon told the Yediot Ahronot daily that he would present his new plan soon. "I just wanted the Israeli public to know that its prime minister has not stopped thinking about how to get out of the impasse with the Palestinians," he told the newspaper.
The plan, as published in the major Israeli dailies, would kick in if efforts to resume implementation of the "road map" peace plan fails.
In that case, Israel would draw its own border -- along the West Bank security barrier currently under construction to keep out Palestinian militants -- and uproot a few small settlements, the newspapers said. Some of the settlers would be moved to the Negev Desert and others to larger settlement blocs in the West Bank. Israel would also withdraw from Palestinian towns and release some Palestinian prisoners.
This has been the inevitable--because best for Israel--outcome all along; it's just a shame they've wasted so many years getting to it.
Posted by Orrin Judd at November 23, 2003 1:35 PM
It was everybody's second best plan. The majority of Israeli's elected Barak in order to implement Oslo. The tide did not turn against Oslo until Intifada II began in fall 2000.
After 9/11/01 and the Passover massacre in 2002, Sharon hit the Palestinians as hard as he could but not as hard as he needed to. At that point, the great mass of Israelis realized that the only option left was the fence.
The left did not like it because it meant giving up on a "liberal" state modeled on the US. The right did not like it because it means giving up on Judea. Its going to be along time before Israelis can visit the tomb of the patriarchs again.
Two weeks ago I heard Yaacov Lozowick, Israeli author of "Right to Exist". His view was that 80% of Israelis backed the fence, that they viewed it not as a peace plan, (because it is impossible to make peace with the Palestinians) but as a means to be able to manage the war at a tolerable level.
I told him that his was the most optomistic view I had heard in a long time and he was taken aback, because he thought he was being pesimistic.
Posted by: Robert Schwartz at November 23, 2003 2:15 PMThey do say that good fences make good neighbors.
Better than airstrikes every week.
Posted by: Michael Herdegen at November 24, 2003 4:53 AMUm. Every week?
Posted by: Barry Meislin at November 24, 2003 12:17 PM