Netanyahu now pledges no Palestinian state on his watch if reelected. He claims ceding land ensures it taken over by Islamic extremists.
“I think that anyone who moves to establish a Palestinian state today, and evacuate areas, is giving radical Islam an area from which to attack the State of Israel,” he blustered.
“This is the true reality that has been created in past years. Those that ignore it are burying their heads in the sand. The left does this, buries its head in the sand, time and again.”
Israel’s so-called “left” matches its hard right. They’re indistinguishable – like Republicans and Democrats in America.
No coalition government in Israeli history ever offered Palestinian statehood recognition.
Nothing more than cantonized, meaningless rump self-determination on worthless scrubland.
With no control over its borders, air space, offshore waters or resources. With Jerusalem reserved exclusively for Jews.
Governance of, by and for everyone equitably in Israel is nonexistent. Not for Arabs or Jews.
Occupied Palestinians are ruthlessly persecuted. Arab Israeli citizens are treated like fifth column threats.
Hate-mongering utranationalist Foreign Minister Avigdor Lieberman wants anybody not declaring loyalty to a Jewish, Zionist, democratic state beheaded.
Netanyahu prefers mass slaughter and destruction. Last summer’s Gaza war may be prelude for what he intends in another term.
He renounced his 2009 Bar Ilan University pledge saying:
“(I)f we receive a guarantee for security arrangements needed for Israel and if the Palestinians recognize Israel as the home of the Jewish people, we will be willing in a future peace deal to reach a solution of a demilitarized Palestinian state side by side with the Jewish state.”
He later said Israel “must establish a strong national government headed by Likud in order to fend off” pressure to withdraw to pre-June 1967 borders.
Days earlier, he called Palestinian statehood irrelevant. He refused to negotiate in good faith during last year’s peace talks. They were still-born from day one.
He claimed elected Zionist Union assures establishing “Hamastan 2” – a term extremist Israeli politicians use referring to another Gaza.
“We are preventing it (by) developing upscale neighborhoods here for tens of thousands of Israelis,” he said.
“(ZU) will give in…and the meaning of this is that we won’t be able to preserve Israel’s security, and the terror that worked against us before will fire missiles at us from these hills.”
“We will continue to build in Jerusalem. We will add thousands of housing units, and in the face of all the (international) pressure, we will persist and continue to develop our eternal capital.”
A so-called OneVoice V15 campaign seeks to oust him. It describes itself as “non-partisan.”
Others call it an “Anybody but Bibi” initiative. It’s affiliated with George Soros. Jewish-American businessman Danny Abraham provides funding.
It matches Netanyahu’s extremism couched in softer rhetoric. He criticized its efforts to defeat him.
He’s flailing at everyone in a last minute desperate effort to win votes. “Anybody but Bibi” would make sense if Israeli voters had legitimate choices.
None exist except perhaps Meretz and Joint List (Hadash and Arab parties) too insignificant to matter.
Palestine will stay occupied. State terror remains official Israeli policy. Ruthless persecution persists. Wars will rage at Israel’s discretion.
Its 20% Palestinian population will be denied representation no matter how many Arabs win Knesset seats.
All Palestinians will be denied hope for a better future. Whatever changes post-election won’t change a thing.
Palestinians remain on their own to achieve long denied liberation.
Stephen Lendman lives in Chicago. He can be reached at [email protected]. His new book as editor and contributor is titled “Flashpoint in Ukraine: US Drive for Hegemony Risks WW III.” http://www.claritypress.com/
