AR Al-Saeed???s essay contributes a much-needed perspective on the stake the United States has in achieving an Arab Israeli peace. While I think he glosses over divisions that yet remain among the Arab states on any number of topics, the reality is that there will be unity of purpose in support of the Arab Peace Initiative. The Saudis under the leadership of King Abdullah have significantly advanced toward becoming the leading diplomatic light in the Arab world ??? and the Egyptians refuse to yield pride of place. This puts the two strongest Arab nations firmly behind peace.
Just as importantly, perhaps, for the US audience, the manner in which Al-Saeed suggests the conditions Israel ought to meet before negotiations begins illuminates the very absurdity of establishing pre-conditions to negotiations. Let???s compare:
1) Israel must lift its siege (???siege under any name is war???), compensate victims, apologize, and promise not to do it again. Hamas must (as the Palestinian Authority has) stop firing rockets and renounce violence generally.
2) Israel must unconditionall accept the Arab peace plan. Hamas must recognize all previous commitments of the Palestinian Authority, including the Oslo Accords which share the territory for peace formula at the heart of the Arab peace plan.
If the conditions are onerous on Israelis, they are just as onerous on Palestinians. Sauce for the goose is sauce for the gander, and all that ??? a point that George Mitchell makes any time he talks about negotiations: the only acceptable or sensible precondition is a cessation of violence. Oh, and by the way, this from the late Israeli Prime Minister Yizhak Rabin: ???You don't make peace with friends. You make it with very unsavory enemies.???
Enough excuses. Get to work. Oh, and President Obama, be prepared to spend some of your political capital on this, because Hamas and Abu Mazen, just like Bibi and Tzipi, will not be the only ones sticking their necks out on this.
Revive The Saudi Peace Plan
The fallout from the Gaza crisis could be enormous. But so could be the benefits of peace.
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History is filled with crises that have become occasions for progress. This moment in the Middle East is just such an opportunity—precisely because events there look so bleak. In Gaza, hope for a better future (for Palestinians and Israelis) has been replaced by collective punishment. Was this avoidable? Absolutely.
In March 2002, the Arab world, led by Saudi Arabia's King Abdullah, offered what is now known as the Arab Peace Initiative. This proposal envisaged Israel's withdrawal to its pre-1967 borders, the establishment of a Palestinian state with Jerusalem as its capital and the return of Palestinian refugees, in exchange for the normalization of Arab-Israeli relations in the context of comprehensive peace. Yet it was ignored by both the previous U.S. administration and by Israel. This caused a certain amount of skepticism, even cynicism, among Arabs, who saw the dream of peace disappear like a mirage.
Those of us who desperately hope for coexistence and beneficial relations between the Arab-Muslim world and the West were also hugely disappointed by the Western response to Israel's atrocities in Gaza. As we survey the wreckage and carnage that once was Gaza, a few basic facts can't be ignored. The extent of human suffering and material loss there has been colossal, and so must be the efforts to bring comfort and compassion to the victims. Fully 40 percent of the dead and 50 percent of the wounded were women and children.
Moreover, the fighting has extended a new lifeline to extremists. One consequence of the mayhem will be the likely radicalization of otherwise moderate and law-abiding Arabs and Muslims (although in limited numbers). We are one step closer to a clash of civilizations, and the tragedy may hinder efforts at intercultural and interfaith dialogue. Values such as human rights and democracy have been dealt a severe setback. Those who claim that the West applies double standards have been proved right.
The limits of what military might can accomplish have also been underscored. Even many Israelis couldn't comprehend or justify what happened. As the acclaimed Israeli novelist David Grossman wrote recently, "What has taken place in Gaza places before us in Israel a mirror that reflects a face that would horrify us were we to gaze on it for one moment from outside." Israel needs to understand that living with its neighbors requires a modicum of sensitivity to human suffering. Siege under any name is war.
Still, people the world over have been heartened by President Barack Obama's determination to tackle this issue immediately. Both the United States and the Arab world are lucky enough to have leaders who combine vision and wisdom with humility. King Abdullah recently told an Arab summit, "Allow me to announce in all our names that we have overcome the period of disunity, and that we will face the future with total unity and without any discord." Only a few hours earlier, in his Inaugural Address, President Obama's words evoked the same generous spirit: "We have chosen hope over fear, unity of purpose over conflict and discord." The appointment of former senator George Mitchell as Middle East envoy also bodes well, thanks to his integrity, impartiality and proven record in conflict resolution.
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