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To Establish a Palestinian State Now, after October 7, Would Be a Strategic and Moral Failure

(Newsweek) Eran Hermoni - When the Oslo Accords were signed, I deeply believed in the political process of compromise and a peaceful solution. I sought to promote the two-state solution for years. But I can't accept it when I hear people calling for Israel to act now in order to establish a Palestinian state. The U.S. Administration is making a strategic mistake by trying to push Israel to establish a Palestinian state only four months after Oct. 7. How can this even be on the agenda, when Israel is still licking its wounds and mourning its dead? This policy ignores the grim reality: If Palestinian society had denounced Hamas and we could say that the massacre was carried out by a few extremists, then there might have been something to discuss. But a survey conducted by the Palestinian Center for Policy and Survey Research found that 72% of Palestinians believe that Hamas' Oct. 7 attack was justified, and in the West Bank, 82% supported it. Moreover, there is no alternative Palestinian leadership that opposed the massacre. None of the Fatah and PA leadership denounced Hamas for the massacre. Time must pass to make it clear that there isn't a connection between Oct. 7 and the establishment of a Palestinian state. When we bring it back to the table, it requires not ignoring the main challenge: Palestinian society would have to undergo a real process of renouncing terrorism and denazification, building up strong support for peace and acceptance of the existence of Israel. This is the way to ensure that the massacre of Oct. 7 won't become the symbol of Hamas' victory. The writer is General Secretary of Israel's Labor Party.
2024-02-22 00:00:00
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