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Is It Time to Declare the Failure of the Oslo Accords?

(Jerusalem Center for Security and Foreign Affairs) Lt.-Col. (res.) Maurice Hirsch - The Oslo Accords were designed to achieve lasting peace between Israel and the Palestinians. The Palestine Liberation Organization (PLO) used the Palestinian Authority (PA), created as part of the Accords, to cultivate ever-deepening Palestinian hatred of Israel and promote terrorism. As a result, the Oslo path has been disastrous for Israel and the Palestinians alike. The Oslo Accords, that provided self-governance for Palestinians in Judea, Samaria, and Gaza, were predicated on the assumption that the PLO recognized Israel's right to exist and abandoned violence and terror as a means to achieve Palestinian aspirations. Yet the PLO-PA have consistently perpetuated a narrative, both within Palestinian society and in international organizations and fora, of Israeli delegitimization. These policies include the constant radicalization of the Palestinian education curriculum, thereby brainwashing and poisoning the minds of generations of Palestinians, and adopting and implementing a multi-billion-dollar "Pay-for-Slay" program that promotes, incentivizes, and rewards terror. As a result of the Oslo Accords, the PLO-PA was given autonomous rule of extensive areas in Judea, Samaria, and Gaza. Instead of building a functioning, democratic, and prosperous society, these areas were turned into safe havens for terror and an incubator for Palestinian terror groups. Despite being given the funding, the opportunities, and the capabilities to establish a functioning and prosperous Palestinian economy, the PLO, the PA, and the Palestinian leadership abused international aid, including substantial U.S. and EU aid, to promote Palestinian national aspirations to destroy Israel. Recognizing and accepting the Oslo Accords' failure would allow all the relevant actors to re-evaluate and develop alternative solutions. The writer, former director of the Military Prosecution in Judea and Samaria, is director of the Palestinian Authority Accountability Initiative at the Jerusalem Center.
2025-03-06 00:00:00
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