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Source: http://www.bitterlemons.org/issue/isr1.php
Time to Deal Separately with Gaza
[bitterlemons.org] Yossi Alpher - A Hamas-Fatah unity agreement is bad for the prospect of an Israeli-Palestinian peace process, at least in the near term. Mahmoud Abbas will have to show deference to Hamas sensitivities and toughen his stand on issues like the right of return. Assuming new Palestinian elections are the first order of business of a unity agreement, Fatah and Hamas will compete in displaying a hard line and peace negotiations will have to be postponed. Under present circumstances, a successful Palestinian-Israeli peace process means an agreement with the West Bank alone. There currently is no prospect that Gaza will be pried loose of Hamas' grip. If there is to be any viability to the notion of an Israeli-Palestinian peace process mediated by the U.S., it's time for all parties concerned to recognize that, for the time being at least, Gaza is a separate entity. Some argue that a state in the West Bank alone won't be "viable," as if the addition of the overpopulated and impoverished Gaza Strip makes a state more viable. The writer is former director of the Jaffee Center for Strategic Studies at Tel Aviv University.