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Redesigning the Peace Process

(Tablet) Richard Landes - We're now approaching two decades of failure of the two-state solution. Every strategy for pulling it off - Oslo, Taba, Geneva, Road Map, Dayton, Obama/Clinton - has, despite sometimes enormous efforts, failed or died stillborn. And yet, with each failure, a new round of hope emerges, with commentators and politicians arguing that this time, if we just tinker with some of the details, we'll get peace right. Palestinian "no's" typically get a pass. But the zero-sum logic of Arab attitudes toward Israel represents Islamic religiosity and deep-seated cultural mores. From the Arab perspective, the very existence of Israel represents a stain on Arab honor and a blasphemy to Islam's dominion. The Palestinian Authority may have made a tactical shift in which they will talk with Israelis and even make public agreements. But they have treated such engagement as a Trojan horse, a feint to position for further war. Here's my proposal to those who feel we must revive the peace process. Call for the Palestinians to show their good intentions toward their own people. Get those "refugees" out of the prison camps into which they have been so shamefully consigned for most of a century. Begin at home, with the over 100,000 refugees in Area A, under complete PA control. Bring in Habitat for Humanity and Jimmy Carter to help them build decent, affordable, new homes. The writer is a professor of history at Boston University.
2012-09-28 00:00:00
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