Limits of Force

Submitted by Steve (United States), Apr 7, 2006 at 11:50

I do not doubt that the IDF could crush any Palestinian opposition. However the situation now calls for a political, rather than military, solution.

The Palestinians have the initiative for three reasons. First, because of the demographics. Israel must withdraw -- and fence around -- those areas where there is a large Palestinian majority, and that means most of the West Bank. Second, to avoid the Bantustan charge Israel must allow contiguity, if it is not demanded by the demographics alone. Third, even after having withdrawn, Israel will still be responsible for providing infrastructural support to the Palestinians, as they do now with power and water, because the Israelis need to control the water resources to the Jordan, which means that Israel will be open to charges of being responsible for the Palestinian plight (whatever that is), and Fourth, because of the severe per capita income disparities between Israelis and Palestinians.

As a result of these factors, Israel's withdrawal from much of the West Bank, as with Gaza, is foreordained. At the same time, Israel's infrastructural responsibilities -- at least in terms of water -- are unavoidable. All the Palestinians have to do in the face of this is exactly nothing, although it is in their interests to renounce violence, at least unofficially. Ultimately the clamor for some kind of socio-economic equality between Jews and Arabs in the region will work to Palestinian interests, not Israeli ones.

This is not a question of power, resolve, or other species of machismo nonsense. Israel should just withdraw behind the lines of its own choosing and ignore the Palestinians.

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