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Palestinians Must Come to the Table

(Boston Herald) Shai Bazak - Israel has declared that it supports the establishment of two states for two peoples - which includes a Palestinian state - and believes that a Palestinian state should be achieved as the result of a comprehensive and genuine peace process. Negotiations remain the only means to reach agreement. However the Palestinian Authority (PA) is attempting to bypass talks and create a state without making peace with Israel. It has refused to participate in serious negotiations for nearly three years. There is an unbridgeable gap between a state with peace and a state without peace. Will the Palestinians have a country from which they launch further attacks on Israel or will they build a country which will live in peaceful co-existence with their neighbor? Instead of negotiating, the Palestinians are assailing Israel with diplomatic warfare. They have orchestrated a recognition bid at the UN in direct violation of the Oslo Accords the PA signed with Israel which specifically forbid unilateral action to change the status of the West Bank and Gaza. Meanwhile, the Hamas-ruled Gaza Strip is engaged in real warfare - firing missile after missile at the civilians of southern Israel. The international community should clarify to the PA that it cannot bypass peace talks and persuade it finally to return to the negotiating table. The writer is the consul general of Israel to New England.
2011-11-16 00:00:00
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