Statehood for Palestine

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Nothing changes in the Israeli-Palestinian theatre until there is a sovereign state of Palestine. The rest of it is futility, bloody futility.

Officially both sides say they will accept, even work toward, establishing a Palestinian state. In reality the hardliners on both sides have opposed it vehemently, violently, and successfully for decades.

The main stumbling block is the condition that each side officially recognize the other. On this point the hardliners refuse to budge regardless of the consequences.

Significant majorities of Israelis and Palestinians could agree to move ahead with a statehood plan in a relatively short period of time. It is the small violent military wings of both factions that hold sway and determine the outcome, time and time again.

It should be noted that the rights of the Palestinian people have repeatedly been trampled upon by the state of Israel. It is by every measure a human rights disaster.

At the same time, the military strategy employed by Hamas is remarkably self-defeating. Whatever credibility Hamas gains through elections is surely squandered by firing rockets at Israel. It is pure bravado and only harms the Palestinian cause.

It is also important to remember that there is an Israeli Left. The Israeli Left is largely ignored by the world. They should not be. This is the internal opposition and the place where change, on the Israeli side, is most likely to come from. The more the world acknowledges the Israeli Left, the more they are empowered.

It is time to draw maps of what Palestine will look like. Such proposed maps will help to make the vision real and tangible. With a proviso: if the map is a Balfouresque patchwork it will most certainly fail, again.