Should Netanyahu cancel peace talks in wake of terror attacks?
Settler chief Danny Dayan: It's unfitting for Netanyahu to attend ceremonies and festive dinners as the victims of the terror attack are being buried.
By Jonathan LisDanny Dayan, the head of the Yesha Council of Settlements, went to Washington at the same time as prime minister Benjamin Netanyahu to monitor developments at the peace summit with Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas. He intends to make sure that amid the Israeli gestures there is no further blow to building in the settlements.
Danny Dayan, does the attack near Hebron shuffle the deck and obligate the prime minister to cancel the direct-talks in Washington?
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Dayan in the settlement of Barkan. |
| Photo by: Tomer Appelbaum |
When the attack occurred, we called on the prime minister to return home. In my eyes, it is unfitting for Netanyahu to attend ceremonies and festive dinners as the four victims of the terrorist attack are being buried. Unfortunately, the prime minister did not follow our suggestion, just as he did not follow other suggestions given to him recently and the ceremonies continue.
On the left side of the political map, it was argued that the terrorist attack was intended to thwart the peace talks, and therefore it is imperative not to give in to it.
Only those who see the conflict through the prism of yesterday's newspaper can think that this is the situation. For the last hundred years, terrorism has been the Palestinians' strategy. Abu Mazen [Abbas] and his gang cannot absolve themselves of the murder. Abu Mazen, demonstratively, visited the grave of the female terrorist from the deadly attack on the bus on the coastal road. He named a square in Ramallah after her. The bigger the terrorist attack, the bigger the street named after the terrorist in the Palestinian cities under the auspices of Abu Mazen and his cronies. The Palestinian youths learn from this what to believe in and how to act, much more than they do from the mere participation of the Palestinian leadership in the direct talks with Israel.
You are essentially blaming the Palestinian leadership of being responsible for the terrorist attack, even though other organizations, including Hamas, claimed responsibility.
The Palestinian Authority leadership is fully party to the murder and is not a partner for peace. They continue the incitement, continue to praise vile terrorists. Even the condemnation issued by the Palestinian Authority after the terrorist attack was completely propagandist and did not contain a single word of grief. Therefore, I think that it is utterly incorrect for the prime minister of Israel to partake in festive meals with this group.
Nevertheless, isn't there a clear distinction between Hamas and the Palestinian Authority and between the Palestinian leadership and organizations that do not listen to it?
The different factions play the roles of the good cop and the bad cop. But they all share the same worldview. There are organizations that call for efforts in two stages: first establish a Palestinian state and then eliminate Israel, and there are others that argue that this has to be done in one fell swoop.
Were you reassured by Netanyahu's remarks before the members of the Likud Central Committee on the eve of his departure to the United States?
Netanyahu did not say clear things about the freeze. Netanyahu said important things, on one hand, and worrisome things on the other. He said that Israel will not concede its security needs and that the Palestinian Authority must recognize Israel as a Jewish state and that is important. But we have been very worried about what Netanyahu is not saying for a very long time now: For over a year Netanyahu has not said that Jerusalem will not be divided. For over a year, he has not said that Israel will not return to the 1967 lines, for over a year he has not said that there will not be uprooting of settlements that were established legally by the government of Israel. These are very worrisome things. The same cabinet ministers who demanded that Olmert not conduct negotiations over Jerusalem must now demand the same today of Netanyahu also. The time has come for the current cabinet ministers to put red lines before Netanyahu in the diplomatic sphere. The ministers in the Netanyahu government were not elected to the Knesset to function as statistics.
Why travel to Washington? Do you think that your trip will have an impact on the peace talks between Israel and the Palestinians?
I came for two objectives originally. The terrorist attack added another objective. I came to monitor the events and to keep my finger on the pulse of the situation. The decisions made here require speedy decisions on our part also. When the previous chairman of the Yesha Council came to the U.S. to monitor talks at the Wye Plantation, he saw how events were evolving and approached the head of the Knesset's Constitution, Law and Justice Committee and the two started working on the process that led to Netanyahu's downfall during his first term in office. It's a historical curiosity, but I hope we will not require the services of the current committee chairman, MK David Rotem, who also resides in [Judea]. Another objective as far as we are concerned is a public relations objective. When the settlements are in the headlines, certainly in light of the latest terrorist attack, the presence of the head of the Yesha Council sparks curiosity. I have had several interviews with leading media outlets. There are topics where the prime minister will do the public relations work and we will just complement him - for example, the freeze regarding which we expect him to say there is no way that it will continue, as he explained when he was in Israel. There are topics that the prime minister will not discuss and we will take his place: such as for example, the fact that the Palestinian state is a threat to Israel's existence, the fact that is impossible to agree to Jerusalem becoming the Palestinian capital, exposing the true face of Abu Mazen and his ilk.
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The PA responded forcefully to Hamas terror with mass arrests. They already proved during Cast Lead they are willing and able to suppression domestic uprising/protest. Now that the Yesha Council has unilaterally announced the end of construction freeze Netanyahu must respond, and he must do so quickly and decisively. The "historic compromise" spells the end of Greater Israel, the large settlement will be annexed and thereafter territorial expansion comes to an end. On the Palestinian side the compromise is leaving Gaza to its own fate. If this is to come to pass the settlers must be confonted - anything else and the whole thing becomes a mere charade which would be better ended as soon as possible to avoid senseless loss of life. Hence the wait will not be long one way or the other ... your move Netanyahu.
Netanyahu come home,give the green light for a triple cast lead operation in Gaza and put Hamas out of it's misery,then KO Hezbollah. The quicker the better.
Do the dinners, do the talks, do the deal. Clean up the bad guys later.
Why? They do not include all the players. Whether people like it or no, Hamas must be at any peace gathering. Secondly, shock horror at deaths by terrorists! The Israelis were in illegal occupied territory. There has been 60 years of Israeli state terror upon Palestinians. ( Some wish to assert they do not exist at all) This terror has been allowed by the US and supported by the US. To raise this recent killing as excuse to meet is hypocritical. Is it awful that people are killed during such events? Yes.
Between Hamas, the Settlers, and failure bound Obama, not to worry. Any deal made will not stand knowing the positions of both sides, not by the governments but, by the people. While Hamas terror escalates, so does the building by the Settlers. Kinda like Hebrew and Indians.
"Netanyahu must freeze talks and focus on ensuring peace for Israel's citizens" - MK Ariel (a rejectionist)/// Given a choice, I think Netanyahu should rush the talks, not freeze them. It is true that talks induce Resistance by the fanatics on both sides. The Jews killed Rabin to stop Oslo, and Goldstein committed his massacre for the same purpose. Likewise, Hamas started bombing buses, specially after Rabin's death to achieve this goal qnd they are doing the same now. Hebron is a hot-bed of Palestinian extremists, so it is natural that the attackers would come from that area. A good question is: Why is Hebron so extreme? The answer seems to be: Because of the Jewish settlers in and across the street from Hebron. Too much friction is not good. It will be necessary to evacuate the neigboring settlers in order for a peace agreement to be stable.
All of Jerusalem and all of Judea. Israel shall not be Jew free.
... and home to a community of peace-loving Settlers. Verily you've outdone yourself, its hard to imagine that you will come up with something so thoroughly purblind, so perfectly Orwellian, ever again!
Of course not. Go Bibi! Go Abbas! show us you have guts and determination. Don't act like spoiled children.
They were a set of murders to be condoned.
It's unfitting for Obama to attend ceremonies and festive dinners and to focus on the Israeli/Palestinian tribal conflict as the dead US soldiers from the war in Iraq and Afghanistan are being buried and the maimed are being hospitalized.
come home
LOVE THOSE SETTLERS!!!
do Eretz Yisrael an ENORMOUS favor and find a home there. Do some house-hunting for your neighbors...
To halt the peace talks would only benefit Hamas as it seems like that's their goal. I hope Israel doesnt do what Hamas wants in this case because it would be a little like if Hamas said "jump" and Bibi answered "how high". Take out Hamas with a strike force with the PA:s security forces and IDF working side by side and don't repeat the strategies from "operation cast lead" which created too many civilian victims. Don't let Hamas play out Israel and PA against eachother. It would only benefit Hamas.
There will never be peace in the ME. Why? Because Amnjd from Iran has a holy mission - to usher in the 12th Madi. That is the Masiach(Jews) and JC(Christians) How? He must start the 3rd world war. (And he is very well on his way to succeed) Hamas = Iran, so Hamas will be used to keep the terror going, and to keep the spin doctors demonizing Israel in the media. So what is Abbas doing at the so called peace talks, when Hamas is in charge of the palestinians anyway. I hope Bibi had kosher food at least, because the food in his stomach will be the only thing that will come from the "peace" talks. PS I forgot to mention that USA actually NEEDS a BIG war, to kick start their economy. My prediction is that USA will silently nudge Israel to attack Iran, and then they have a reason to come to the party, as to "save" Israel from Iran. The rest of the world will join in, because they all need an injection into their economies. Go and check history, reason for the wars where driven by a stagnant or depressed economy. The peace talks are only a diversion for what is to come. What is Egypt and Jordan doing there anyway?
Would it not be giving terrorists what they want?? These are not "festive dinners" this is work. The situation is that terrorists have to understand that these acts of terror makes their situation worse. There is no gain.
They say that you make peace with your enemies , and not your friends , and to those who are pretending that they do not know I would like to quote ; The Palastinians are your bitter enemies !
But there are a million ways to try to derail it. It takes very little to orchestrate a terrorist attack, and the only way to respond to it is by doing what the British did so well during the Blitz - get on with your plans.
Mr. nethanyahu should not take part in festive meals while israelis are being killed. He could wait in the toilet while the others are eating. But he should start (kick-start) talks as soon as possible. We all understand that there are as many Palestinian "peace talkers" as there are Palestinians (they will NEVER be able to agree on anything amongst themselves, let alone with the Israelis) but an honest attempt should be made if it is not too late.
Always an excuse to avoid doing the obvious: long term elimination or decrease of number of these attacks by agreeing on peace terms. A dog barks at you to provoke you to give him attention. The best way to train a dog not to bark or bite, is to ignore him. The same with people. Ignore the attacks, ignore the settlers!
phoned obama on your cell-phone the minute you heard of it and said "mr president i have no time to play games of pretend footsy and have fake teaparties my people need me" and he should have ordered the plane to go about and return to israel. to hell with them.
If Israel allows Palestinians to continue to rot in captivity, in Gaza & refugee camps, how can Israelis enjoy their prosperity as both Palestinians & Israelis live in this small strip of land called Palestine?
Peace and Books and Good Food on The Table. On the Table: Sura 5:20 will always be Sura 5:20. Genesis will always be Genesis. Exodus will always be Exodus. Sciptures will always be sciptures. [5:20] Recall that Moses said to his people (the Jews), “O my people, remember GOD’s blessings upon you: He appointed prophets from among you, made you kings, and granted you what He never granted any other people. [5:21] “O my people, enter the holy land (Israel) that GOD has decreed for you, and do not rebel, lest you become losers.” Its on the table. (Literally, The name of that Sura is The Table).
These people grab the land of the indigenous Palestinian population, they infest the Westbank with their illegal dwellings, they carve the area up by their walls, bypassroads and checkpoints. In many cases, they bully their Palestinians neighbours. And for years they were protected by the Israeli military. For years they have guzzled up resources Israel could very well have used for better purposes, f.i. education. The attacks are horrible, but are they really a surprise? Didn't these people reap what they have sown? Were some of them not willing purpetratrors of Isreali expansionism?
Same goal; continue conflict
No, in fact he should request that Hammas be represented; after all, they are a representation of more than 50% of Palestinians. Also, while they still carry arms, they are far better than the current Palestinian regime, since that regime is dictated and it’s looked as being a group of corrupt businessmen that lacks legitimacy. Almost all Palestinians do not consider Abbas and his regime as a legitimate representation of themselves. They are looked upon as corrupt puppet dictated regime the same as those in Jordan, Saudi, Egypt, Yemen, …etc. Any agreement that comes out of these talks, will be just like the peace treaties between Jordan and Egypt and Israel, where the treaty is only between a dictated regime and Israel, and not between the people of Jordan/Egypt and Israel. So war will stay on, hate will keep going, …and nothing will change, the only thing new will be is a dictated peace treaty that is only good on paper, but on the ground, the people will still consider Israelis as their enemy.
Hamas rejects the existence of Israel totally, renegs on the agreements reached between previous Palestinian Governments and Israel and 'resistance' (i.e. terror) as the only 'remedy' for the situation. Inviting them is only going to strengthen their hand and will do nothing to bring about a settlement.
If you give in to violence you have handed the perpetrators the gift of satisfaction, that indeed they can control and direct events. Instead the answer is prevention, joint security coordination with PA and more importantly NOT TO GIVE IN.
The vicious circle of terror/settlements, terror/settlements, remains unbroken....Nobody seems to attempt to stop this circle... yet, there is ONLY ONE SIDE THAT CAN STOP IT - HAMAS !! The settlers will stop when terror stops... they can be forced to stop. But Hamas cannot be forced to stop. So, they will continue with terror until the whole West Bank will be full with Israelis. Demography is not in their advantage - the religious make at least as many babies as the Arabs....SO, HAMAS WILL NOT WIN ! If the Palestinians cannot rein in the terrorists, they will lose their country altogether. AGAIN, REMEMBER ! NEITHER AMERICA NOR ISRAEL CAN STOP HAMAS. ONLY THE PALESTINIANS CAN.
"The settlers will stop when terror stops" You mean the "settlers " will stop stealing land when Hamas stops attacking them for stealing land ? "If the Palestinians cannot rein in the terrorists, they will lose their country altogether." as they already are losing it .
look at gaza the isrlies continuously broke the treaty, and they continued until hamas could no longer take it. are you going to tell me isrl is the victim here? i think not but the pals certainly are.
if you used a greater number of exclamation marks and more ALL CAPS.
Hamas is an extension of Iran. They were elected by Palestinians and have the same objectives as the Palestinian Authority, both are terrorist. Its like telling a shark to quit being a shark.
As sad as it is and to be condemned that people pay with their lives on the way to peace, the settlements are an obstacle all these years and partly responsible we do not have that peace. Think for once not only about your own misery, think about the millions of Israelies & Palestinians who yes want the 2 peoples= 2 states solution in harmony. We within the Green Line pay an enormous price all these years, as do common Palestinians put up with settlers who behave like overlords. ENOUGH!!
What is the actual killinbg rate Jews/ Palestinians? If the Palestinians are the only killers than Isarel woulod be right to cancel the peace negotiations. The fact is different. There are much more killed Palestinians, there are continous land theft, there are daily raids in the occupied territorries, tehre are still building activities in Jerusalem. Some days ago a well known rabbi has demanded the killing of Palestians and their leaders. Israel is a country, which diregard ineternational laws, human rights and which has commeted war crimes in Gaza and in Lebanon.
The hamas attack on the settlers was clearly designed to harm the peace talks. Fresh deaths on either side underline the need for a peace process, the specific aim of the peace process is to end the conflict and thus prevent these type of events in future. What about any of that is hard to understand?
there is no other explanation for it. the pals are taking it up the ass because we in the west are brainwashed to think that the europeans have the right to arab lands. enough already, take out isrl i can bet that peace breaks out the next day. of course our war lords would not stand for that so they will find a new way to go to war. the arabs need to understand this that they are being used a fauder and they need to help us in the west to get rid of our war lords if we all want to live in peace. God bless the freedom fighters.
Show some respect to your fellow Israel;s and come home. Do you really think that after 60 years the palestinians are going to change. From being a strong leader once you are going to the opposite weak. Israel is sick of hearing peace and we have attacks and we are sick of Barak's comments , they mean nothing.
yeah so let Hamas direct the war, and have us fight forever?? i am tired of having my people die, we need peace!! ive lost one too many friend, can someone tell the settlers to leave already??
obese, white, 50-something, racist tea party kook
If Netanyahu were to cancel the peace talks because of the terror attacks, then the terrorists would have won! The worst thing that could happen, in the view of these terrorist organisations, is peace between Israel and Palestine, because then they'd have no power. Seriously, do you really think these attacks happened now by chance? There's no doubt that they were trying to screw up the peace talks.
http://wp.me/pDB7k-pE
Illegal immigrants form a militia and ask you to leave your home and land. You call this an opportunity? LOL The deal is ready now and the Palestinians are offering it for Israel. Let's see who blows it.
it's hamas, not 'the palestinians'. the PA condemned the ambush hours after it was reported. grow up and get real.
It Israel who has missed the opportunity.They had a chance for peace in 1967 but they chose land instead.
There was no chance of peace in 1967. After the war the Arabs said: no negotiations, no recognition, and no peace. After the Arabs said this, they should have been kicked out of the UN for violating the principles of international law and the UN charter.
The three no's (Khatoum Resolution) of September 1967, or the Alon Plan of July 1967?.
It is Israel that is violating numerous UNSCR's and the Fourth Geneva Convention. See the attached list, beginning with UNSCR 242: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_United_Nations_resolutions_concerning_Israel
This is EXACTLY what Netanyahu SHOULDN'T DO!!! Netanyahu can LEVERAGE these attacks at the negotiating table. Why do you think Hamas did them in the first place? If Israel were to OFFER Abbas as part of a peace plan the military assistance for the PLO to storm into Gaza and TAKE OVER Gaza under PLO control, then Abbas and Israel look like the winners and Hamas is dissolved. This would kill two birds with one stone. OFFER Abbas a retaking of Gaza by the PLO via Israeli & PLO joint coordination to get Hamas out, and OFFER this as a CONCESSION by Israel to the the PLO... How can Abbas say no? Israel isn't just offering most of the west bank BUT AS WELL offering to hand Gaza to him on a silver platter. It's a win win situation that would destroy Hamas while signing a peace deal with ALL of what is supposed to be the Palestinian state... Brilliant!
You extremists would like nothing better than for the peace talks to be derailed irregardless of the consequences of perpetual violence (for which you, in part, gladly provoke and perpetrate) for your children and mine. i applaud BB and others for holding course and mentoring focused leadership. Maybe, just maybe, BB, like the silent majority here, is truly growing tired of the extremest minority holding our country, our future, hostage. Maybe, just maybe, he IS going to make history, to bring G-dly fraternal peace, shalom, wholEness to our people which, i dare say, is true Zionism.
Stop saying "settllements" & "settlers" They are just like the other people that live there... They are RESIDENTS & they live in COMMUNITIES.The peace talks are worthless. Bibi is waisting his & everybody elses time. When the Arab world recognizes Israel as a Jewish State on Jewish land then there will be something to talk about!!!!!!!!!
The people referred to as "settlers" should be called eastern Israelis.
If the settlers are Eastern Israelis, then so are the Palestinians in what the world calls the West Bank. Start campaigning for Israel to grant them the citizenship of which they have been unjustly deprived.
It's almost funny how you paint settlers whiter than white, they are just like the other people around them, or so you claim. But in reality they steal land from the other people around them, they build settlements that exclude the other people around them, appropriate the top floors of other people's houses in Hebron around them and throw garbage and excrement down on the owners still living below. They build roads that exclude the other people around them and throw other people around them into Jerusalem's streets. No the settlers are not like the other people around them, they are protected by the IDF and they are a law unto themselves.
You extremists
Yes, by all means cancel the talks. That is exactly what we are hoping for!
The only way there should be talks, is if all the participants unequivocally condemn these attacks. If not, call the charade off and retaliate hard!
There are plenty of Israelis who absolutely do not want peace.
Not the kind that libero-fascists want to impose on us, i.e., the grave.
And this animal is Hamas which is being cornered by peace. So question is, will you release the pressure and let it escape, or will you keep pressuring?
The question is do they have the power to thwart the talks as the author suggests? As for the talks it now strikes me as pretty obvious that the major objectives are: 1) Splitting Gaza from the West bank 2) Coming to near final status agreement over settlements. It would be naive to suppose that a collapse of the current Israeli government would be sufficient to stop an agreement over settlements, Yes it would cause a pause but very likely such would lead to a electorial backlash on the theory that the outcome of the last election was a reflection of a right leaning public more so than any true sympathy with the Settler Movement. Thus a "peace" government would likely sweep into power; after which a then politically marginalized Settler Movement would be reduced to civil disobedience - only then could their true power evaluated but frankly I suspect they'd be no match against Israel proper.. As for Hamas I seriously doubt they have any meaningful external support, namely I find it highly improbable that any of Lebanon, Syria, or Iran will act in their interests. There is moral support of course but talk of military intervention/war seems to me exceedinly unlikely, rather that fear is just typical Israeli propoganda which serves other purposes. Hence if the Palestinians are to remain united Hamas/Gaza can only be saved the the West Bank "street", namely another intifada that rejects the PLO/Fatah leadership. But the PA now has a formitable security apparatus (for suppressing mass public protest), that combined with general powerlessness makes the prospect highly improbable. Hamas then is reduced to limited to acts of terror that ironically serve the interests of settlers (even as it maims and kills them). So it seem the "historical compromise" of which Bibi talks may very well come to pass, not tomorrow but perhaps not far from the year the US Administration is suggesting. It should be noted that all this is clearly directed by the US, it would appear it has decided that a change is required for its own interest, and that is something that Isreal (to say nothing of the Palestinians) cannot oppose (the "go it alone" banter often on display in the Israeli press is just pure nonesense). Finally notwithstanding the question of the fairness of the resulting "peace" the international community would no doubt rush to endorse it (and Obama will have "earned" his Nobel). ... after all none of this would be occuring were it not for what the US perceives as its own interest, and that's the one piper no one affort to disobey, as least not if desiring to stand on tweo legs when all is said and done.
of any event, irrespective of how terrible it is, to protect the people of Israel. If that is what he is attempting to do, then he is attempting to do the right thing. He must also assess whether he can be effective in his efforts. That will play itself out in the negotiations.
As Obama correctly pointed out, the current situation is NOT sustainable (All of the other leaders in the ME other than Bibi have also pointed this out). If there is no agreement soon, then the alternative is massive war eventually. I realize that Israelis think they can win every war from now until forever, but history clearly shows that is NOT TRUE. And when Israel loses the war, it is all over. Think about that. Do you want to give up lots of land, water, cash and apologies for 1947 or have everything taken away? That is really the stark choice Israelis face. Negotiate fairly or lose everything. What do you choose?
Heard that one before. 1948: "we will destroy the Jewish state in two weeks;" 1967: that one lasted six days; 1972: surprise, Israel got caught napping, but still won. 2006: a lot death and destruction, but that's the best that Arabs can do. Of course the best that Arabists can do is carp and complain.
We heard your sympathy loud and strong for them.
Peace talks with Palestine is rationalized insanity. Abbas is not even at peace with his own people. Both Hamas and the Palestinian Authority believe Israel does not have the right to exist. I fail to see the wisdom of discussing anything with them, especially peace
I agree wholeheartedly with J.B . They are wearing blinders if they think that they can make peace with these destructive people. Too many factions running around taking the law into their own hands. !
any relations to THE Jake Burton- Id love to know that he were pro israel.
Are you talking about Israel? Where we have the settlers, the IDF and the state itself which take the law into their own hands and ignore both international and domestic law? I must respectfully disagree, even though Israel has many flaws and has caused many obstacles to a peace deal I am convinced that it is entirely possible to reach a lasting peace.
Perhaps Mr Observer should engage facts before opening mouth..League of Nations document that establishes the British Mandate Nov 2nd 1917...have a read
remember the un general assembly offering to illegally partition the 1922 mandate and the arab response in 1948? the arabs created their own problems observer its not occupation ! they forgot the golden rule never start a fight you cant win !!!!