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Source: http://www.israelhayom.com/site/newsletter_article.php?id=20759
Ya'alon: Palestinians Want to Destroy the Jewish State
(Israel Hayom) Shlomo Cesana - Israeli Defense Minister Moshe Ya'alon was asked in an interview why Israel decided not to topple Hamas' rule in Gaza: "Many options were raised, among them operational plans that involved entering Gaza, conquering it and cleansing the territory. After a cost-benefit analysis we concluded that it was not the right move right now to attempt such an operation. We realized that there is no one that could take our place once we conquer and cleanse: Not Mahmoud Abbas, not the Egyptians, not the Arab League and not the UN. That means that if we went in there, we would get stuck there." "I assert that victory is bringing the other side to agree to a cease-fire on your terms....And indeed, we brought Hamas to agree to a cease-fire in a way that ran contrary to their wishes. That is undoubtedly an achievement. There is victory on the ground because of the heavy price that Gaza had to pay. I expect that they will think twice before escalating violence again in the future." "Ever since the clashes began in 1936, Dr. Moshe Beilinson, who served as the deputy editor of the [now defunct] Davar newspaper, was asked 'when will it end?' and he would reply 'when the last of our enemies understands that we are here forever.' There are no shortcuts. Our efforts to create shortcuts over the last two decades - from Oslo until the present day - have all failed." "Abbas has never said that he recognizes us as the nation state of the Jewish people. He also never said that if a compromise is reached, even one that adheres to his vision of the 1967 lines, it would end the conflict and the [Palestinian] demands. He never said that he has given up on demanding refugee rights. So where can we go with him?" "The other side doesn't think that the 1967 lines will be the end of the story, and they never said that it would be the end of the story. To them it is merely a stage; it is not about establishing a state, but rather destroying the Jewish state and negating its existence. There is a lack of symmetry here that is not in our favor, so we need to learn how to manage this conflict without delusions."