(New Republic) Joseph Braude - By departing Gaza without a peace deal, Israel affirmed with finality that the dream of economic integration and political partnership between Israelis and Palestinians is dead. Confederation in the sense of heightened political and military coordination as well as economic interdependence between Jordan and Palestine may represent the most viable path to rebuilding the economy and society of the West Bank and Gaza. King Abdullah formally relieved his half-brother Hamza of his role as crown prince and replaced him with his own ten-year-old son Hussein, whose mother, Queen Rania, is a Palestinian with roots in the West Bank. The promise of a half-Palestinian king reigning in Jordan gives the present monarch unprecedented popularity with Palestinians on both sides of the Jordan River.
2005-09-01 00:00:00Full ArticleBACK Visit the Daily Alert Archive