Middle East Inside Line (30 August): Israel-Gaza Tension Rising, Sweden and Israel Still Fighting

Israel Tension with Hamas Rising: The tension between Israeli forces and Palestinians in Gaza has been increasing since Monday. Palestinian militants fired a Qassam rocket into the Western Negev. A 20-year-old Palestinian was shot dead when he approached a security fence separating Israel and the northern Gaza Strip; the Israeli military claimed that gunmen were placing a bomb near the security fence and opened fire. After the Palestinian's death, mortar shells fired from the Gaza Strip injured an Israeli soldier; the Popular Resistance Committees (PRC), a Palestinian militant group, claimed responsibility.

On Tuesday, two Israeli jets dropped bombs on smuggling tunnels in the southern town of Rafah. The IDF said that the airstrike, which killed three Palestinian brothers and wounded seven others, was in response to Monday's mortar shell fire at Israel on Monday.

Israel-Sweden Fight Continues:

After recent tension over Palestine and the "stolen organs" controversy, diplomatic storm clouds are still over Stockholm and Tel Aviv. On Friday, Egyptian Foreign Minister Ahmed Aboul-Gheit gave a clear yet a provocative statement in Sweden:

East Jerusalem must be included in a freeze of settlement activity before Middle East peace talks can restart....Jerusalem is Arab and it will continue to be so.

Meanwhile, Washington has denied reports that the Obama Administration dropped the demand for the freezing of settlements in East Jerusalem in exchange for the Israeli concession of a 9 to 12-month settlement freeze in the West Bank.

Israel and Mitchell-Netanyahu: No Agreement Yet "Good"

Israel-Palestine: After Mitchell Meeting, Netanyahu Presses His Advantage
Israel-Palestine: Fayyad Puts Invitation to Israel within a “Palestinian State”

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The four-hour meeting between President Obama's envoy George Mitchell and Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has ended. Predictably, there has been no agreement on the settlement issue. However, the joint statement put out by both sides characterized the meeting as “good” and added: “Both sides [Israelis and Palestinians] need to take practical steps towards furthering the peace."

After Monday’s meeting between British Prime Minister Gordon Brown and Netanyahu, in which the latter said the settlement issue could be resolved through negotiations but the Palestinian refuse to recognise Israel as a Jewish state is a major obstacle, today’s “good” meeting is a more hopeful sign. It was agreed that representatives from Netanyahu’s office will go to the U.S. for further discussions with Mitchell’s staff.

The Cable blog adds:

Several Washington Middle East hands believe the parties are close to an agreement on resuming Middle East peace talks between Israel and the Palestinians, Israel and Syria, and on resuming normal relations between Israel and its Arab neighbors in the fall. The Obama administration is expected to announce its peace plan parameters and a rough timeline for proceeding around the time of the United Nations General Assembly opening session in New York later next month.

Netanyahu is now on his way to Germany, with the situation of the Israeli soldier, Gilad Shalit, held in Gaza, and the Iranian issue likely to be high on the agenda of talks with Chancellor Angela Merkel.

Israel-Palestine: Fayyad Puts Invitation to Israel within a "Palestinian State"

Israel and Mitchell-Netanyahu: No Agreement Yet "Good"

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After Israeli Foreign Minister Avigdor Lieberman said that there would be no Palestinian state in the next 16 years, Palestinian (West Bank) Prime Minister Salam Fayyad talked to the Times on Tuesday and declared that the Palestinian Authority intends to establish a de-facto state within two years:

We have decided to be proactive, to expedite the end of the occupation by working very hard to build positive facts on the ground, consistent with having our state emerge as a fact that cannot be ignored. This is our agenda, and we want to pursue it doggedly.

Fayyad added that if a functioning de facto state existed — with or without Israeli co-operation — including competent security forces, functioning public services and a thriving economy, it would force Israel to put its cards on the table as to whether it was serious about ending the 42-year occupation of the West Bank.

Yet this is far from a declaration of resistance to the current Israeli line. Fayyad's reference to "security forces" indicates he is ready for a de-militarized West Bank, and “a thriving economy” implies a blank cheque for Israeli investment and a welcome for Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s economic improvement plan.

Fayyad also said that the days of mutual recriminations were over and that both sides must commit to the 2003 “road map” whereby Israel would implement a comprehensive settlement freeze and the Palestinians would curb the activities of militant groups. In effect, this was a guarantee that there will be no terrorist action by Fatah.

The touchstone issue of division is Israel's continuing construction of 2,500 housing units in the West Bank, which Fayyad said it was vital to stop. Given the Palestinian Prime Minister's willingness to give ground in other areas, will Tel Aviv finally give a concession on settlements so talks can resume?

Video and Transcript: President Obama's Ramadan Message (21 August)

On Friday, President Obama offered a special Ramadan message to Muslims around the world. Celebrating the beginning of the holy month, Obama reiterated his “to do list” for a “peaceful” world. That list begins with a two-state solution for the Palestinian-Israeli conflict, withdrawal from Iraq, and the waging of a “necessary” war in Afghanistan and Pakistan.

And a special note for the domestic front: President Obama emphasized his Christian faith in order not to give any room for renewed speculation that he is a "secret Muslim".

[youtube]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UncWt4VKZQo[/youtube]

OBAMA: On behalf of the American people – including Muslim communities in all 50 states – I want to extend best wishes to Muslims in America and around the world. Ramadan Kareem.

Ramadan is the month in which Muslims believe the Koran was revealed to the Prophet Muhammad, beginning with a simple word – iqra. It is therefore a time when Muslims reflect upon the wisdom and guidance that comes with faith, and the responsibility that human beings have to one another, and to God.

Like many people of different faiths who have known Ramadan through our communities and families, I know this to be a festive time – a time when families gather, and meals are shared. But I also know that Ramadan is a time of intense devotion and reflection – a time when Muslims fast during the day and perform tarawih prayers at night, reciting and listening to the entire Koran over the course of the month.

These rituals remind us of the principles that we hold in common, and Islam’s role in advancing justice, progress, tolerance, and the dignity of all human beings.

For instance, fasting is a concept shared by many faiths – including my own Christian faith – as a way to bring people closer to God, and to those among us who cannot take their next meal for granted. And the support that Muslims provide to others recalls our responsibility to advance opportunity and prosperity for people everywhere. For all of us must remember that the world we want to build – and the changes that we want to make – must begin in our own hearts, and our own communities.

This summer, people across America have served in their communities – educating children, caring for the sick, and extending a hand to those who have fallen on hard times. Faith-based organizations, including many Islamic organizations, have been at the forefront in participating in this summer of service. And in these challenging times, this is a spirit of responsibility that we must sustain in the months and years to come.

Beyond America’s borders, we are also committed to keeping our responsibility to build a world that is more peaceful and secure. That is why we are responsibly ending the war in Iraq. That is why we are isolating violent extremists while empowering the people in places like Afghanistan and Pakistan.

That is why we are unyielding in our support for a two-state solution that recognizes the rights of Israelis and Palestinians to live in peace and security. And that is why America will always stand for the universal rights of all people to speak their mind, practice their religion, contribute fully to society and have confidence in the rule of law.

All of these efforts are a part of America’s commitment to engage Muslims and Muslim-majority nations on the basis of mutual interest and mutual respect. And at this time of renewal, I want to reiterate my commitment to a new beginning between America and Muslims around the world.

As I said in Cairo, this new beginning must be borne out in a sustained effort to listen to each other, to learn from each other, to respect one another, and to seek common ground. I believe an important part of this is listening, and in the last two months, American embassies around the world have reached out not just to governments, but directly to people in Muslim-majority countries. From around the world, we have received an outpouring of feedback about how America can be a partner on behalf of peoples’ aspirations.

We have listened. And like you, we are focused on pursuing concrete actions that will make a difference over time – both in terms of the political and security issues that I have discussed, and in the areas that you have told us will make the most difference in peoples’ lives.

These consultations are helping us implement the partnerships that I called for in Cairo – to expand education exchange programs; to foster entrepreneurship and create jobs; and to increase collaboration on science and technology, while supporting literacy and vocational learning.

We are also moving forward in partnering with the OIC and OIC member states to eradicate polio, while working closely with the international community to confront common health challenges like H1N1 – which I know is of particular to concern to many Muslims preparing for the upcoming hajj.

All of these efforts are aimed at advancing our common aspirations – to live in peace and security; to get an education and to work with dignity; to love our families, our communities, and our God. It will take time and patient effort. We cannot change things over night, but we can honestly resolve to do what must be done, while setting off in a new direction – toward the destination that we seek for ourselves, and for our children. That is the journey that we must travel together.

I look forward to continuing this critically important dialogue and turning it into action. And today, I want to wish Muslims across America and around the world a blessed month as you welcome the beginning of Ramadan. May God’s peace be upon you.

Saturday Debate: Prosperity or Invasion in the West Bank?

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Israel's high-profile Ambassador to the US, Michael Oren, has been on an intense public-relations campaign over the last week. He had a nice chat with Fareed Zakaria on CNN and then wrote last week in the  On August 13, The Wall Street Journal published "The West Bank Success Story". Oren explained that the economy of the West Bank has been flourishing because of the decline of terrorism and corruption and because of Israel’s contribution to the area's financial boom. After “the Palestinian initiative [on security] and the responsible fiscal policies of West Bank leaders”, supported by Israel’s initiatives through “removing dozens of checkpoints and road blocks, withdrawing Israeli troops from population centers, and facilitating transportation into both Israel and Jordan”, the West Bank is enjoying “an annual economic growth rate of 7%, declining unemployment, a thriving tourism industry, and a 24% hike in the average daily wage". Meanwhile, in Gaza, “Hamas has spent millions of dollars restocking its supply of rockets and mortar shells”.

Slovaj Zizek, not quite as high-profile as Oren, begs to disagree. Zizek, the international director of the Birkbeck Institute for the Humanities, wrote on Tuesday, "Quiet slicing of the West Bank makes abstract prayers for peace obscene". Zizek claims, "While paying lip-service to the two-state solution, Israel is busy creating a situation on the ground that will render such a solution impossible.” Israel’s “bureaucratic invasion” of the West Bank, with legal  settlement constructions, is the main obstacle to peace:

The state of Israel is clearly engaged in a slow, invisible process, ignored by the media; one day, the world will awake and discover that there is no more Palestinian West Bank, that the land is Palestinian-free, and that we must accept the fact. The map of the Palestinian West Bank already looks like a fragmented archipelago.

So, what do you think? Is the Netanyahu Government deliberately slowing the peace process through “the pretext of economic flourishing”, whose primary outcome is the widening of the gap between Gazans and the inhabitants of the West Bank? Or is this economic growth the only way to reach a settlement through a “bottom-up” process, even if the issue of settlements is still a political problem to be resolved?

West Bank Success Story

The Palestinians are flourishing economically. Unless they live in Gaza.
Michael B. Oren

Imagine an annual economic growth rate of 7%, declining unemployment, a thriving tourism industry, and a 24% hike in the average daily wage. Where in today's gloomy global market could one find such gleaming forecasts? Singapore? Brazil? Guess again. The West Bank.

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Quiet slicing of the West Bank makes abstract prayers for peace obscene

Condemnation of 'illegal' settlements and violence only blurs the reality of what the Israeli state is sanctioning, day by day.
By Slovaj Zizek

On 2 August 2009, after cordoning off part of the Arab neighborhood of Sheikh Jarrah in east Jerusalem, Israeli police evicted two Palestinian families (more than 50 people) from their homes; Jewish settlers immediately moved into the emptied houses. Although Israeli police cited a ruling by the country's supreme court, the evicted Arab families had been living there for more than 50 years. The event – which, rather exceptionally, did attract the attention of the world media – is part of a much larger and mostly ignored ongoing process.

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