Hardly a month has passed since the Annapolis conference between Israel, Palestine and Arab neighbors under the close guidance of the United States of America that was held at the end of last month, yet Israel has not made any effort to prove to its arch enemies and the international community.
One sensitive and volatile issue among the Israelis and the Palestinians is the one which is related to the former’s continuous imperialistic policy of building new Jewish settlements across the occupied areas predominated by Arabs. The Israeli plan to build around 10,000 new apartments for its growing population along the edge of northern Jerusalem would not go down very well with both the Palestinians and the international community for many think that for peace to have any chance of making a headway into the age-old conflict, both the conflicting parties should give up old bad habits. But if one looks at the Israeli politics closely, it would appear that the whole political set-up is dominated by hardline Jewish extremists who believe that the Jews are the only people that have the right to live in the ancient Biblical land. It certainly would be very hard to change the mindsets of such people.
The alleged building of new apartments by the Israeli government could have disastrous consequences for the overall prospect of peace in the Middle-East. Jewish settlememts across the occupied territories are heavily protected by the Israeli army and the state and to prevent Palestinian terror attacks on the settled Israeli families, the ordinary Arabs and Palestinians face acute discrimination and they live under a virtual Israeli martial law. Any further plans of new settlements would further increase the tensions.
Unconfirmed yet firm reports from Washington suggest that US President George W Bush is set to visit the Middle East to hold talks with the Israelis and the Palestinians regarding the progress both sides have made towards peace. Although President Bush knows everything about the ongoing Israeli arrogance, one can write off any change of attitude on the part of the Jewish state even after the President’s visit. The Israelis know that at a time when the US presidential elections are at a premium, President Bush would never try to annoy the strong Jewish lobby in America, which plays the most important role in electing the country’s future President, by asking Prime Minister Ehud Olmert to abandon aggressive plans. So expect the aggression to continue with no real chance for Annapolis to bloom inside one of the world’s most dangerous places.
Source Link: Telegraph
Image Link: Greatmirror
