Needs a topic on the Israeli-Palestinian peace process

[Misty]

Another presidency, another attempt for peace. Of all the past attempts, never has an attempt had so much potential for success, and so much potential for failure. With Olmert, Abbas, and Bush all at nadirs in their popularity, there is a lot of skepticism that anyone would be willing to accept their ideas. On the other hand, it is obvious that the 60 year war is wearing thin and most of the people on both sides are in favor of peace. With wide attendance from the Arab League - even Syria - there is certainly a possibility for success.

If I had to pick an issue that I think will doom this, it is the marginalizing of Hamas. More than anyone else, Hamas has the power to ruin this whole thing by upping their attacks - which will very likely spark the drive of Israel's hard-liners, who have already gone on record to threaten resignation from Parliament if a deal for sharing Jerusalem comes about.


If I had to make one suggestion that I think would help this scenario, it would be increased involvement from more "neutral" powers, such as the European Union, Canada, China, or Russia. The Arabs will be (rightfully) suspicious of any deal brokered by the US, who is a steadfast Israeli ally through thick and thin. I believe this is especially true because any successful deal will require large concessions by Israel, who will need a lot of insurance to convince them after what happened in Gaza. This is going to require a lot of faith on both sides, and that could be greatly eased by international support.

 

[GrnMarvl14]

My opinion can best be summed up by Egyptian President Hosni Mubarak (Source for my two random quotes):

“We must not view Annapolis as a failure,” Egyptian President Hosni Mubarak said before the summit started.

If I had to pick an issue that I think will doom this, it is the marginalizing of Hamas. More than anyone else, Hamas has the power to ruin this whole thing by upping their attacks - which will very likely spark the drive of Israel's hard-liners, who have already gone on record to threaten resignation from Parliament if a deal for sharing Jerusalem comes about.

Hamas pledged to pack more explosives in its homemade rockets, and Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad said, “Participation in this summit is an indication of the lack of intelligence of some so-called politicians.”

Ultimately, I don't see anything actually happening. Both sides will make concessions, but neither side will be willing to do whatever the other side feels "needs" to be done. Both sides feel wronged, and both sides feel they've done no wrong. You can't have two victims in a negotiation. The entire thing is just an attempt for Rice to end her term in office with something to show for her time. But, hell, that's EVERY Secretary of State since AT LEAST the Carter administration. They all think they can solve things, but ultimately fail because neither side's willing to budge more than a couple of inches. Sure, both sides will SAY they want peace, but they're too bull-headed to actually make any big move. And, ultimately, what will that accomplish? So now Israel doesn't have to worry about the nations around it attacking it. It's still got terrorists to deal with. The anger among the people won't suddenly stop, so all this will be is a nice little piece of paper that says "peace." And that piece of paper will do as much good as any other piece.

 

[Mozz]

How about how the Arab states use the Palestinians as pawns and refuse to take them into their countries?