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Source: http://www.jpost.com/servlet/Satellite?pagename=JPost/A/JPArticle/ShowFull&cid=1035953931328
Chief of Staff: Palestinian Terrorism May End Israel as Jewish State
(Jerusalem Post) Mati Wagner - IDF Chief-of-Staff Lt.-Gen. Moshe Ya'alon told an Israel Management Center conference in Tel Aviv on Wednesday: Failure to achieve a decisive victory against Palestinian terrorism may put an end to Israel as a Jewish state. A decisive victory against the Palestinians that does not allow them any option besides compromise would prove the futility of terrorism as a means of obtaining political demands. Many Palestinian leaders, among them sworn terrorists, have reached the conclusion that terrorism is leading nowhere, but one man hasn't gotten the message (referring to Yasser Arafat). At no time since the establishment of the state has Israel been so endangered by Arab hostility. A clear U.S. victory on the Iraqi front would help convince those Arab countries with an equivocal stand on Israel's right to exist to choose the road of peace. Preventing potentially dangerous countries from developing nuclear capability is of cardinal importance to the future of Israel. Reforms in the Palestinian Authority that are prerequisites for future stability include abandoning terrorism, changing present leadership, restructuring and unifying Palestinian security forces, establishing a legislative and executive infrastructure based on democratic models, introducing financial transparency, and educating the next generation of Palestinians toward peace. Israel has taken over responsibility for searching out and eliminating terrorist cells operating within the PA, and as a result there has been a substantial reduction in the number of terrorist attacks. Our soldiers and reservists have demonstrated their determination and strength in the battle against terrorism. Terrorists thought that a prosperous Western society doesn't have what it takes to fight, but we've proved them wrong.