Daily Times

One evening, during the 2002
intifada, a Canadian colleague visited me in my hotel room in Baghdad. He had a daughter from his marriage to an Armenian wife. By Jewish tradition the faith is passed on by matrilineal descent and so he converted his infant daughter that morning through a ritual bath called the mikvah. He made sure that his daughter was Jewish in the eyes of the Jewish faith and, in case anything happened in altruistic Canada, his daughter would have a place to go. He quoted Golda Meir, the former Israeli Prime Minister (PM), “Israel’s secret weapon is Jews have no place else to go.”
The Likud Party, led by Benjamin Netanyahu, emerged as the single largest party in the newly elected Israeli parliament. It attained 30 seats in the house of 120. Though the Likud Party could not secure an absolute majority, it positioned itself as the front runner in forming the next government. If and when the government is formed, it is certain Netanyahu will lead the government. He will thus be a fourth term PM of Israel elevating him to the stature of Ben Gurion, the first PM of Israel to have earned this glory. Netanyahu however superseded Ben Gurion in crafting an electoral victory marked by coercion and intimidation. He alerted the electorate that Jewish voters were being marginalised as the Arabs were turning to the polls in groves. Netanyahu dismissed the Palestinian state as fantasy and promised it would not happen on his watch. He portrayed President Obama as an accomplice in Iran’s bid to acquire a nuclear arsenal. His strategy worked; Likud’s principal rival, the Labour Party, contrary to a pre-poll survey, descended to second position in parliament.
Netanyahu’s assertion that the right wing government was in danger as the Arabs were coming to polls in groves sparked consternation in the 1.7 million Arabs in Israel. Despite being 20 percent of the population, they have been subjected to systematic discrimination. Prior to the election, Israeli Foreign Minister Lieberman suggested that since Arabs could not muster the minimum votes required they should cease to have representation in parliament. The Israeli Arabs participated in the election under a coalition named the joint list and secured 14 seats, emerging as the third largest entity in parliament. Lieberman’s party failed to retain representation in parliament.
On March 23, 2015, Netanyahu apologised for his comment and said, “I view myself as the prime minister of each and every citizen of Israel, without any prejudice based on ethnicity, religion or gender.” The Israeli Arabs rejected the apology as “meaningless, aiming to legitimise his racist reign. Netanyahu’s racism did not begin with this inciting statement and surely will not end there.” They resolved to continue the struggle to gain equality for the community. President Obama denounced Netanyahu’s remarks and said, “This kind of rhetoric is contrary to what is the best of Israel’s traditions.”
On the Palestinian state, Netanyahu clarified that he is not opposed to a “two-state solution” but “for that, circumstances have to change”. Earlier he said, “Anyone who is going to establish a Palestinian state today and evacuate lands is giving attack grounds to radical Islam against the state of Israel.” Palestinian leader Mahmud Abbas interpreted Netanyahu’s words as proof that the Israeli government lacks commitment to a political solution. The White House spokesman denounced Netanyahu’s remarks as “cynical and divisive tactics that are unworthy of values that the US and Israel value”. He also said, “An occupation that has lasted almost 50 years must end. The Palestinians have the right to live and govern themselves in their own sovereign state.”
It is undeniable that the Israeli government under Netanyahu’s leadership inexorably pursued a “one state solution” and applied ‘settlement as a mechanism’ in order to make the Palestinian state impossible. Successive US governments have tried to dissuade Tel Aviv from expanding settlements into the occupied territory but have failed. The Obama administration disapproved of settlements and offered incentives for their suspension but Netanyahu remained defiant. A new settlement scheme in East Jerusalem was approved prior to the election despite denunciation from Washington and European capitals. There is a growing realisation in the international community that settlements have expanded so much that no viable Palestinian state could be established within the 1967 border. Under these circumstances what are the options left for the Palestinians?
Palestinian leaders reiterated that they would pursue “war crimes charges” against Israel and scrap the “security arrangement” with Israel in the West Bank. These actions will have far reaching consequences. Israel has already withheld millions of dollars in tax revenue, pushing the Palestinian Authority to the brink of collapse. The termination of the security arrangement would imply redeployment of thousands of Israeli troops around the settlements, bringing four million Palestinians under full servitude. The stage would thus be set for another full-blown intifada.
Netanyahu navigated through troubled relations between the US president and the speaker. He condemned Obama in the Congress for allowing Iran to acquire nuclear capability. A nuclear Iran, Netanyahu believes, is an existential threat to Israel. His speech alienated moderate Democrats, many of whom are sympathetic to Israel. Republican senators threatened Iranian leaders that a deal without Congressional approval would be an exercise in futility. By their action Republicans have undermined the partnership Washington forged with European allies and China to work out an honourable agreement with Iran.
The US government refused to take Netanyahu’s backtracking lightly. A spokesman characterised “Israel and Palestinian states existing side by side in peace a bedrock principle of US policy. Netanyahu’s actions have eroded that principle and we need to rethink our approach.” One option the US might consider is to navigate a UN Security Council resolution outlining the parameters of a two-state solution. If that happens, it would mark a historic departure from the one-eyed policy the US has been pursuing for decades in the troubled region. This would pave the way for EU countries to seriously consider sanctions against Israel to force the latter to comply with Security Council resolutions.
Netanyahu debunked himself very well. No amount of apology and backtracking will ostracise his anathema about the Palestinians and Palestinian state. He damaged relations with the US, which has provided unconditional support to Israel for decades. President George Bush said in 2008 that US recognition to a Palestinian state is long overdue. Six years later, 133 countries approved Palestinian statehood in the UN. The US should now seize this opportunity, join the rest of the world and recognise Palestine. Given Israel’s current isolation, I wonder whether my friend is still exuberant about his daughter’s second home in Israel secured for her through the mikvah.

The writer is a former official of the United Nations