Israeli President Benjamin Netanyahu, in a joint press conference with President Obama, said today that Israel "cannot go back" to the 1967 borders with its neighbors in its negotiations with the Palestinian Authority. He cited over 300,000 Israeli settlers in disputed territory as the reason.
What he did not say was that this was Israel's plan all along. While pretending to negotiate in good faith with the Palestinians, Israel was building settlements in lands claimed by the Palestinian Authority. A LOT of settlements.
Angry Palestinians would send rocket and mortar fire into these settlements as a means of expressing their pent-up rage at Israel. Israel would counter by shutting down the West Bank and Gaza, rolling in tanks and delivering harsh "justice" while shouting to the world that the PA could not be trusted because it could not control its own people. While the world was focused on the plight of the peoples in the West Bank and Gaza, Israel was quietly approving new settlements, seemingly on a daily basis.
Benjamin Netanyahu would smile and shake hands with US Presidents and talk of peace with the Palestinians while expanding Israel's territory by shoving the Palestinians off of their lands. Now, he claims that he "cannot go back" because there are just too many settlers and too much of an investment made.
Someone PLEASE tell me why we continue to support Israel. They've been lying to us for DECADES. It's obvious by their actions that Israel is not interested in peace with the Palestinians or a Palestinian state, despite all of the lip-service they give the ideas.
Here's what President Obama (or ANY US President, for that matter) should do: cut off ALL funding to Israel. Stop ALL trade with Israel. Deliver the message: Make peace with the Palestinians RIGHT NOW, or you're on your own.
Will the President do this? Of course not. It's political suicide. But this kind of tough love is exactly what Israel needs so we can put this Middle East "problem" to bed once and for all.
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