Peter Beinart: Obama Betrayed Ideals on Israel (excellent read)

[shaayecanaan]

25. re Refugees and Settlements

http://transparency.aljazeera.net/files/5012.PDF

SE: So we look at what’s doable. The Jordanians will support whatever AM decides.
Egypt, I don’t know – they want to bring Netanyahu in. The Russians want a meeting in
Sochi … The French – I told them stop this, don’t try to bypass the US. You are what’s in
it for us. There is no other way. We have to avoid fragmentation. We asked you to give us
your position on the end game, not a treaty- give us your position. Countries have
positions. Your position is two state solution, Palestinian state, ending the occupation. So
we said 67 borders with agreed swaps. That’s your position, so say it! If you put down such
a paper we will call an emergency Arab summit and get it accepted. Netanyahu will reject.
Either he will change his coalition or there will be elections. Israelis want the two state
solution but they don’t trust. They want it more than you think, sometimes more than
Palestinians. What is in that paper gives them the biggest Yerushalaim in Jewish history,
symbolic number of refugees return, demilitarized state… What more can I give?

DH: Can we be more specific …

SE: On process … will meet with Uzi Arad. You know the paper – the paper I gave to
Daniel, AM wrote it himself. We translated it. AM knows the Israelis well. He understands
Netanyahu. He saw the minutes of his cabinet meeting where he talked about his book
“Under the Sun” and called AM an extremist and a terrorist. AM will not allow Netanyahu 4
to do to him what he did to Arafat. AM is the father of the peace camp, Oslo – and 18 years
later Israel remains the source of authority. His heart aches when he sees families thrown
into the streets of Jerusalem. And Fayyad as well –with the events in Nablus. So these are
the choices. [SE prints copy of paper]. Why can’t you adopt the paper?

http://transparency.aljazeera.net/files/2825.PDF

We proposed that the ratio of swap should not exceed 1.9% from the total area of
the West Bank, including East Jerusalem and the Gaza Strip, and that swapped
land should be located on 1967 borders.
- As for settlements, we proposed the following: Removal of some settlements,
annexation of others, and keeping others under Palestinian sovereignty.
- This last proposition could help in the swap process. We proposed that Israel
annexes all settlements in Jerusalem except Jabal Abu Ghneim (Har Homa). This
is the first time in history that we make such a proposition; we refused to do so n
Camp David.
- We cannot accept the annexation of Ma’ale Adumim, Ariel, Giv’at Ze’ev, Ephrat
and Har Homa settlements.