BIBI'S APPALLING DECISION

By Sig Demling

For most of the Prime Minister's administration, I've fully supported Benjamin Netanyahu.

I believed that he had Israel's best interests at heart when he took office and for a long time thereafter.

But that seems long ago. Now I have doubts. Big-time. 

My displeasure is based on a conversation I had with an Israeli friend shortly after Ariel Sharon decided to hand the rule in Gaza back to the Arabs.

The then Prime Minister's intentions may have been noble but the results have proven to be disastrous. Not only did the Arabs -- no surprise here -- destroy all the industry Israel left for them to develop but hothouses were razed and synagogues eliminated.

Arik didn't foresee that Hamas would viciously annex Gaza while murdering its Fatah counterparts although an X-Ray of Arab mentality should have at least hinted at such homicide.

Simply put, Sharon's lesson that should have resonated for decades through the government in Jerusalem was that if you do a favor for an Arab expect a butt-slap in return.

Apparently this maxim has conveniently been forgotten by Netanyahu. 

Coerced by Barack Obama into allowing Mahmoud Abbas to demand pre-conditions, Bibi capitulated. That was Mistake Number One because it inevitably invited Mistake Number Two.

Already, the Arabs were licking their chops in high glee. Kerry, who stated up front that there would be no pre-conditions, suddenly is allowed to do an about-face, abjectly giving in to Abbas. 

At this point in time, The Old Bibi would have unequivocally stated to Obama-Kerry: "You said 'No pre-conditions' THEREFORE, NO PRE-CONDITIONS. Therefore, I'm outa here."

Such a reasonable response would have: 1. Put Abbas in his place; 2. Have Obama-Kerry understand that they either must to stick to their word  or face the consequences; 3. Force Kerry to put the onus on the culprit, Abbas.

But something unsettling -- to say the least -- has happened to the Prime Minister. The New Bibi has developed politically wobbly feet and we're seeing the point underlined every week.

A brief chronology, Professor Truth:  A. Netanyahu changes his mind and agrees to pre-conditions; B. Abbas demands a full-scale prisoner release; C. Israel agrees; D. Abbas insists that it's not enough; E. Bibi agrees to a further prisoner release.

Alas, caving in to the Arabs has now become official Israeli policy.

At the current pace, it may never stop. 

What's more, I've never been more disappointed in Bibi in my life.