(Commentary) Jonathan S. Tobin - On Tuesday, the UN Security Council met to discuss "The Situation in the Middle East." But instead of tackling the difficult problem of how to end the civil war in Syria that has taken hundreds of thousands of lives or the rise of ISIS, the UN preferred to devote its time and energy to Israel's continued presence in the West Bank, as UN Secretary General Ban Ki-moon rationalized Palestinian terror by declaring, "it is human nature to react to occupation." Ban ignores the fact that Israel has repeatedly offered the Palestinian Authority statehood and withdrawal from almost all of the West Bank. If the goal of the Palestinians were truly statehood, they would have jumped on the deals put on the table in 2000, 2001, and 2008, all of which would have granted them sovereignty over this territory as well as a share of Jerusalem. But Palestinian leaders have never been willing to accept the legitimacy of a Jewish state no matter where its borders might be drawn. That's why all discussion of Palestinian "frustration" is deeply misleading. The Palestinian refusal to negotiate peace has made it obvious that the widespread belief that the settlements are the obstacles to peace is absurd. Palestinian public opinion continues to view the Jewish presence in any part of the country as unacceptable. Whether Jews are sitting in a cafe in Tel Aviv or in a West Bank settlement, Palestinians think they deserve death. It is not "human nature" that drives Palestinians to seek out random Israelis to stab or shoot, but rather a Palestinian ideology that views territorial compromise as treason.
2016-01-28 00:00:00Full ArticleBACK Visit the Daily Alert Archive