Summary
The political outcome to which we should aspire is the
dismemberment of the Palestinian Authority because this body personifies two
terminal demands upon the very existence of the Jewish state: The “right of
return” for all the Arab refugees and the demand for the establishment of a
Palestinian state in Western Eretz Israel. Negotiations are possible
only with local bodies and can only refer to the search for a modus vivendi,
not for “peace” or a “solution”.
Those who support the establishment of a
Palestinian state condition their agreement upon:
-
Demilitarization.
-
A prohibition on signing military treaties.
-
Supervision over the exploitation of the mountain
aquifer.
-
Supervision over the border crossings.
-
Control over the air space above the Palestinian
state.
No Palestinian government will ever honor these
restrictions, but without them life in Israel will become a nightmare.
The Arabs are unable to conclude a European peace, aside
from “Hudaibiya”-style agreements, which they are commanded to violate
at the first opportunity. Therefore we have to return to a life without
agreement and without “solution”, life in the midst of a conflict.
Paradoxically, the internalization of the absence of
peace may produce psychological alleviation, people realizing that the Jewish
state was not created to spare the need to fight, but to provide the
capability to do so.
The sole possible model for a modus vivendi is
autonomy.
Autonomy will not arise under an agreement. It will
emerge de facto, not de jure, but gradually and in a modular
fashion. Those who would take part in its implementation need not assume
political responsibility.
It is the Israeli Knesset that will legislate autonomy
for the Arab residents, retaining security (aside from internal policing),
foreign affairs, basic infrastructure and supervision over entry and departure
at international boundaries.
The residents of the Autonomy will elect concerning their
home rule, not vote for the Knesset. Their national voting will be in the
country of their citizenship which is Trans-Jordan – the Hashemite Kingdom or
a Palestinian Republic therein.
The boundaries of the Autonomy will be fixed to encompass
the majority of the Arab population, not according to the “Green Line” or the
Oslo A-C areas. Arabs detached from the Autonomy will have the option of
receiving Israeli citizenship, according to the East Jerusalem model.
To solve the problems of the Arab refugees and the
problem of the increasing population density, resources in land and finance
located outside the area of Western Eretz Israel are essential. The
Gaza strip is over-crowded, whereas the areas of northern Sinai are empty. The
empty expanses of Jordan belong organically to the political and economic
context of the Palestinians.
And yet, a realistic response to the question “what is
your solution?” is the continuation of Zionist praxis by unilateral action.
Zeev Jabotinsky, in his famous article “ The Iron Wall”,
saw this 68 years ago:
One cannot dream of a voluntary agreement between us and the
Arabs over the Land of Israel... When every crack in the iron wall will be
sealed, then will influence pass to more moderate groups...the only way to
attain an agreement in the future is to totally abandon any attempt to reach
an agreement in the present.
A version of this paper was published in Hebrew
in the March 2002 issue of NATIV.
For the complete text of this article
(in English), click here.