By Simon Fischler
Peace is an interesting term when dealing with the Israeli-Arab conflict, mostly because it asks everyone involved in the process or living in the area in question to take history and toss it out the window.
I want peace, for my children, for myself, for my fellow citizens and I even want peace for the Palestinians.
I do not want peace at any price, especially not at the price of committing national suicide.
The majority of Israelis feel the same. I also know a majority of us are willing to make great compromises for true peace.
Attaining peace in this conflict is far simpler than people make it out to be.
It takes the recognition of both nations’ (Jewish and Arab) right to exist here. Israel has gone to great pains to express this and recognize this.
The Arabs have not.
Prime Ministers of Israel from Itzhak Rabin to Benjamin Netenyahu have all said that a final peace agreement would lead to the creation of a Palestinian (i.e., Arab/Muslim) state.
Not one Palestinian leader has ever been, or is now ready to recognize Israel as the Jewish state.
That means just one thing, the Arabs have never really wanted peace!
This creates an absolute impasse that has existed since the State of Israel came into being!
The fascist, Arab, nationalist, movements that followed the Jewish nationalist movement have never excepted the concept of peace because it runs contrary to their dream of establishing a greater Arab state in all of the Near-East.
Thus, even with all of John Kerry’s hopes, how can Israelis be asked again to compromise, when we are always met with propaganda, rhetoric, lies and absolute intransigence on the subject of Israel’s right to exist as a Jewish state?
Why in the world should Israelis support peace, when the side we are supposed to be making peace with is doing all they can to delegitimize the nation we have created and worked and fought so hard to protect?
Why should we endanger ourselves when the other side is so unwilling to take that one simple step?
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