Contradictory aims

It was reported in the Jerusalem Post on Tuesday that PA PM Ahmed Querei had
gone to Damascus and negotiated an agreement with leaders of Hamas and
Islamic Jihad not to disarm them. Musa Abu Marzouk of Hamas reported that
the talks were "cordial" and that agreement was reached that the terrorist
organizations can retain their arms in Gaza and the West Bank. This is
diametrically contradictory to what Pres. Abbas has agreed to do under the
terms of the Road Map, where the first requirement for the Palestinians is
to disarm the terrorists and destroy their infrastructure. There is really
no possibility that he will do this, either because he can't or he won't.
Either way he is continuing the parallel aims of Yasir Arafat, to persuade
the western world that he is dedicated to peace with Israel, while at the
same time allowing the terrorists to continue their violent activities.
A secondary issue is how is it that Hamas and Islamic Jihad (funded by Iran)
still have offices in Damascus, when Pres. Bashar Assad assured Pres. Bush
months ago that these offices had been closed down.
After the Israeli disengagement from Gaza, it has been argued by Israeli
spokesmen as well as by Pres. Bush, that it is now up to Abbas to show that
the Palestinians are ready for peace, the "ball is in their court." The
most obvious way they can do this is to suspend all terrorist attacks
against Israeli civilians. While we have been lulled into a sense of
security by the recent ceasefire, not many commentators expect this to last.
Having claimed that they have forced Israel to leave Gaza, the terrorists
cannot just sit back and allow Pres. Abbas to take center stage by
negotiating a deal with Israel. They must continue their 'armed struggle'
in order to retain credibility in the power struggle within Gaza. Maybe
that's what Abbas also wants them to do in order to keep pressure on Israel.
Meanwhile Israel also has contradictory aims, first to consolidate its hold
on the densely populated parts of the West Bank, that will never be returned
to Palestinian control, and also to negotiate peace with the PA that also
claims that territory. A British member of the European Parliament on the
BBC advised Israelis yesterday, that now that we have disengaged from Gaza
that it won't be so hard to disengage from the West Bank, all we have to do
is prepare ourselves. But, what he fails to understand is that parts of the
West Bank are Israeli territory, they are not just claimed by Israel, they
are Israel! So Israel (under PM Sharon or Netanyahu) must prepare a plan
that clearly delineates what we intend to keep and what we are prepared to
withdraw from to help form a Palestinian State, as long as there is peace.
The Palestinians will claim that what we are prepared to give them is not
enough, then we should be prepared to give up some of our sovereign
territory to make up the difference and to persuade Egypt to give some up
too (this plan is based on a suggestion of my friend Israel Ringel). Since
they are always complaining about the poor Palestinians, if Mubarak wants
peace let him give up some of his territory too.