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Don't Fear Arab "Victories"
(Israelinsider.com) Mitchell G. Bard - Ironically, it is the Palestinian terror that has kept Israel in Gaza, precisely because of the concern over repeating the Lebanon precedent and giving the Palestinians reason to believe they can bomb Israel out of Judea and Samaria as well. The Palestinians understand, however, that Judea and Samaria are different. Israel has no claim to Lebanon or Gaza, but it does have a very strong political, religious, psychological, and historical attachment to the West Bank. The Palestinians may still harbor the illusion that the international community will force Israel to the 1949 armistice lines, but they also understand Israel will not be terrorized into that kind of retreat. When Israel withdraws from Gaza, and/or parts of the West Bank, it will hardly be a victory for the Palestinians. Two years ago, Israel might have been seen as retreating, but now Israel controls all the territory and is making a strategic redeployment based on its own security needs, not the demands of terrorists. Let them declare victory, just as Arafat flashed the "V" sign as he was shipped off to Tunis from Lebanon.