YNET NEWS: Given US president’s policy, it doesn’t pay to be moderate these days
The American president’s tough approach towards Israel and the turning of Jerusalem into a public bone of contention constitute an unexpected gift to the Middle East’s radical regimes. It doesn’t pay to be moderate these days. If the US president is so radical towards Israel, how could the Arabs afford to be more moderate than him?
There was always construction in east Jerusalem, yet the Arab world did not turn it into a major slogan, yet it’s happening at this time because of Obama, among other reasons. The US president also prompted Palestinian positions to get tougher in a hurry. After all, they cannot demand less than he does.
If during the Bush Administration, the Palestinians engaged in negotiations with Israel without addressing the settlements at all, while their construction continued, during Obama’s era they have demanded a freeze, then a full freeze, including Jerusalem, and now they want a complete stop.
This is turning from Palestinian-Israeli negotiations into American coercion vis-à-vis Israel, and the Palestinian demands in respect to borders and refugees will only grow now.
Without noticing it, Obama also internationalized the conflict again and brought in all the Mideast’s troublemakers as partners: The Arab League headed by the radical Amr Moussa, the Arab states’ monitoring committee, and in fact all Arab regimes, with all their animosities and disagreements.
Arab League Secretary General Moussa, a blatant Israel-hater, is now in charge of approving or rejecting Mahmoud Abbas’ moves. The Arab League is now a super-negotiator, against Israel, thereby being granted a veto power. Did Moussa speak of the Iranian nuclear threat in the recent summit meeting in Libya? The opposite was true: He recommended dialogue with Tehran, while warning of Israel’s nuclear threat. Outdated, false doctrine >>> Guy Bechor | Sunday, April 04, 2010
