by Patrick D. O’Brien
Clarity & Resolve*
November 03, 2005
http://clarityandresolve.com/archives/2005/11/with_friends_li.php
* Cross-posted with permission

As If the Disaster of the Oslo Accords Never Happened

Proving that prolonged exposure to the U.S. State Department can compromise the most brilliant and morally sound of individuals, it looks like Condoleezza Rice has foisted more retrogression on both Israelis and Palestinian Arabs. From Ynet: Israel changes stance on Hamas

New attitude: Defense Minister Shaul Mofaz says Israel would not interfere with Palestinian elections even if Hamas candidates run for office, backing off earlier threats made by Prime Minister Ariel Sharon.

In a meeting with U.S. Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice in Washington, Mofaz articulated Israel’s new position, but made it clear that Jerusalem still expects the Palestinian Authority to start disarming the terror group even before the elections. The defense minister added that in any case, Israel would not be talking to elected Hamas members.

So what? If they’re elected, they will have gained legitimacy in the eyes of the world, and Israel will be seen as the inflexible obstacle to peace for refusing to deal with these murderous Islamic monsters.

Israel and the U.S. currently see eye to eye on the issue of disarming terror groups. Speaking in Los Angeles, National Security Advisor Steve Hadley said America made it clear to Palestinian leader Mahmoud Abbas, particularly after the Hadera terror attack, that he must take immediate action against the Islamic Jihad. U.S. officials say Abbas is now facing intensive pressure from all international Quartet members to start acting.

Actually, no, Israel and the U.S. definitely do not see eye to eye on this issue. If that were the case, Defense Minister Mofaz would instead be announcing his gratitude that the United States is standing firm in its stated principles of refusal to deal with terrorists, and commitment to building democracy. Also “Islamic Jihad” and “Hamas” are only names for the same phenomenon: genocidal, anti-Israel Islamic terror. It all needs to be eradicated before real peace can happen.

As for “pressure” on Arafat 2, the fact there needs to be any at all only demonstrates what a colossal failure this whole roadmap idea has been, because dismantling Palestinian Arab terror groups has been the primary requirement of the PA from day one. The matter is moot, though, since, like his namesake, Arafat 2 has demonstrated that he will not respond to external pressure to live up to his commitments simply because he does not have to. The PA has always been unaccountable, while a lopsided onus has always been placed on Israel’s shoulders.

Speaking of which…

Meanwhile, Rice asked Mofaz to reopen Gaza Strip border crossings and to take steps that would ease the lives of Palestinian civilians.

I know that this is State’s way of being “evenhanded” by trying to show that America is not solely in the (free, democratic, and morally answerable) Israeli camp, but come on… It’s a dangerous moral equivalence to imply that “easing the lives of Palestinian civilians” is somehow comparable to protecting the rights of Israelis to remain alive. Because history has shown over and over that when the lives of Palestinian Arabs are eased, Israel’s streets are painted red with the blood of Israeli civilians.

In the end, this wrongheaded course of Foggy Bottom diplomacy sets up a de facto terror state as Israel’s peace partner. In effect, this sentences Israelis to more terror and it robs Palestinian Arabs of the chance to build a true democracy focused on peace, civility, prosperity, and genuine hope. This is inimical to the most fundamental precepts of liberty, the American spirit, and plain ethics—not to mention the Bush doctrine. It should be obvious that it’s just plain stupid to permit terror groups to run in democratic elections before more democratic institutions are allowed to take root in a society. This ensures a speedy death for burgeoning freedom, and a protracted war—which, I suppose, is fine if that’s what everyone is really looking for…

Have we really learned nothing from Oslo?