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16 November 2012 By Stephen
Lendman Follow-through won't change facts
on the ground. Israel's annulment threat is hollow. Oslo reflected unconditional
Palestinian surrender. Israel triumphed
diplomatically, economically and politically.
Palestinians got nothing in return. More on that
below. On November 14, Haaretz headlined
"Israel: We will annul Oslo Accords if Palestinians
seek upgraded UN status," saying: Israeli ambassadors are spreading
the word. Israel will consider partial or full
cancellation of Oslo provisions. On November 29,
General Assembly Member States vote. Upgraded status
looks virtually certain. Abbas said he'd seek non-member
observer status on November 15 or 29. The UN
recognizes the latter date as International Day of
Solidarity with the Palestinian People. November 15 is Palestinian
independence day. On November 15, 1988, it was
proclaimed in Algiers. At the time, the PLO adopted
the Palestinian Declaration of Independence. Palestine
is a legitimate state. Israel's position changes
nothing. PLO legal advisor Francis Boyle
drafted the independence document. He included
safeguards to assure all sovereign state rights. His
document left no wiggle room loopholes. He also made
sure UN membership won't comprise them. Palestine satisfies all essential
criteria for sovereign independence and full de jure
UN membership. Why Abbas hasn't sought it he'll have
to explain. It he proceeds as planned, he'll
seek non-member status in lieu of full de jure rights
and privileges. He's Palestine's worst enemy. He
represents quisling leadership. He's a longtime
Israeli collaborator. What he'll actually do isn't
sure. On November 11, an Israeli
Foreign Ministry cable told ambassadors: "You are asked immediately at the
beginning of the work week to contact the foreign
ministry, prime minister's office, national security
adviser or president's office and request to do all
possible to halt the Palestinian initiative because of
its far-reaching consequences." Foreign Minister Avigdor
Lieberman also met with Israeli EU ambassadors in
Vienna. He told them to respond harshly to upgraded
status during General Assembly proceedings. He also discussed recrimination.
Possible measures include halting tax transfer revenue
to the PA, canceling permits for Palestinians allowed
to work in Israel, and partial or full Oslo
cancellation. Roni Leshno Yaar is Israel's UN
Geneva ambassador. He heads the Foreign Ministry's
international organizations division. He signed the
cable to other ambassadors, saying. "The Palestinian resolution is a
clear violation of the fundamental principle of
negotiations, and is a violation of the agreements
between Israel and the PLO." "The adoption of the resolution
will give Israel the right to re-evaluate previous
agreements with the PLO and consider canceling them
partially or completely, and would make progress in
the peace process more difficult in the future." Washington and Israel are working
collaboratively. Heavy pressure is being exerted to
subvert Palestine's upgrade. EU states are pressed to
go along. They provide substantial aid. They have
considerable influence. Washington also provides funding.
Palestinians were told it may be sharply reduced or
eliminated. The UN Relief and Works Agency for
Palestine Refugees in the Near East (UNRWA) may also
be targeted. Netanyahu prioritizes the issue.
He's held daily ministerial discussions. On November
12, he and senior ministers considered what they most
fear. Palestine's upgraded status
permits suing Israel in the International Criminal
Court (ICC). Netanyahu and other officials could be
charged with crimes of war and against humanity. Israel isn't an ICC member so
rulings would be non-binding. Prosecution would be
symbolically significant. Other criminal proceedings
could follow. Perhaps economic measures also. Haaretz said Netanyahu, Lieberman
and Finance Minister Yuval Steinitz consider an ICC
suit "a declaration of war." Israel would respond
accordingly. It's very much concerned.
Consideration is being given to recognizing
Palestinian statehood within provisional borders in
return for abandoning its UN bid. An Israeli Foreign
Ministry statement said: "In the event that the
Palestinians give up going to the UN, Israel must
reach an agreement with the Palestinian Authority for
a Palestinian state along provisional borders, during
a transition period - until the stabilization of the
Arab world, new elections in the Palestinian
Authority, and a clarification of the relations
between the West Bank and Gaza." Haaretz said measures being
considered include: (1) Recognizing a rump
Palestinian state. It would cover a tiny portion of
West Bank land. Israel falsely claims it would be 40 -
50%. Unmentioned is that Palestine
already is a state. Whether or not Israel affords
recognition makes no difference. All valued areas would remain
under Israeli control. Nothing on the ground would
change. Israel's offer is demeaning, insulting, and
meaningless. (2) No deadline would be set for
determining permanent borders. Negotiations would
decide them and all other core issues. Oslo said the
same thing. Nineteen years later, nothing changed. (3) Palestinians would refrain
from acting unilaterally. No ICC suits would be
filed. (4) Israel would continue
construction in large settlement blocs. In other
words, land theft and Palestinian displacement would
continue unabated. Provisions above are being
considered. They're laughable on their face. Foreign
Ministry discussions continue. Cabinet members have
final say. The measure also says if
Palestine seeks UN non-member observer status, severe
recrimination will follow. Draft language says: "A reality in which the United
Nations recognizes a Palestinian state according to a
unilateral process will destroy all Israeli deterrence
and completely harm its credibility, something which
will upturn every future arrangement that would have
been considered acceptable by Israel into completely
impossible." "Although this step is not
simple, considering the implications that Israel will
have to deal with, the only other option in this case
would be the toppling of (the PA)." "The other option, of containment
or a softer response, would be seen as raising a white
flag and conceding that the Israeli leadership is
unable to deal with the challenge." On September 13, 1993, the Oslo
Accords were ceremonially signed. Doing so was
unconditional surrender. It was a Palestinian
Versailles. No outcome or concessions were specified.
Israel obstructed and delayed. Israeli occupation was affirmed.
Palestinians got nothing for renouncing armed
struggle, recognizing Israel's right to exist, and
leaving major unresolved issues for later final status
talks. They matter most but never came. Major issues are at stake. They
include Israeli recognition of an independent
Palestinian state, the right of return, the future of
settlements, borders, water rights, and status of East
Jerusalem as sovereign Palestinian territory and
future home of its capital. In September 1995, Oslo II
followed. Taba, Egypt played host. Countersigning
occurred four days later in Washington. The agreement
called for further Israeli troop redeployments from
Gaza, as well as major West Bank population centers
and rural areas. Designated military zones and
territory in and around settlements were excluded. The West Bank was divided into
three parts. Each has distinct borders,
administration, and security rules - Areas A, B and C
plus a fourth for Greater Jerusalem. A complicated
system was as follows:
•
Area A under Palestinian control for
internal security, public order, and civil affairs;
•
Area B under Palestinian civil control
for 450 West Bank towns and villages; Israel
retains overriding authority; and
•
Area C, its water resources, and
settlements under Israeli control; it comprises the
West Bank's most valuable land. Israel controls the Territories.
It uses Oslo to steal all Judea and Sumaria areas it
wishes. When
Separation Wall construction is completed,
settlements, military areas, no-go zones, nature
reserves, commercial areas, by-pass roads, tourist
sites, checkpoints, and other barriers will comprise
up to 60% of West Bank territory and Palestinian East
Jerusalem. In September 1999, the Sharm
el-Sheikh Memorandum was consummated. It implemented
Oslo II and other post-Oslo I agreements, including: (1) a 1994 Protocol on Economic
Relations favoring Israel; (2) a Cairo Agreement on Gaza and
the Jericho Area the same year; (3) the 1994 Washington
Declaration and Agreement on Preparatory Transfer of
Powers and Responsibilities between the two parties;
and (4) the 1995 Protocol on Further
Transfer of Powers and Responsibilities. Both sides agreed to resume
permanent status talks. They also agreed to negotiate
peace, Israeli troop redeployments, land transfers,
safe passage between Gaza and the West Bank, a Gaza
seaport, prisoner releases, other security related
issues, normal civilian life activities, international
donor aid, and a timetable for final status talks on
the toughest issues. In July 2000, Bill Clinton hosted
Arafat and Prime Minister Ehud Barak at Camp David.
Betrayal and rejectionism followed. Barak insisted Arafat sign a
"final agreement," declare an "end of conflict," and
relinquish all legal claims for additional land. In
return, he offered nothing. There was no written offer, no
documents, and no maps. A meaningless May 2000 one was
used for illustrative purposes only. It showed the West Bank divided
into four isolated cantons under Palestinian
administration. Israeli controlled land and expanding
settlements surrounded them. Gaza was left in limbo. Israel's
summer 2005 disengagement followed, then siege in June
2007. Israel's deal was duplicitous.
Arafat rejected it. He was pilloried for doing so.
Israel also targeted him for death. He was poisoned
and died in a Paris hospital in November 2004. In July 2001, a Taba summit
addressed final status issues. Nothing was
accomplished. George Bush's "road map" to
nowhere followed. Good faith was absent. Talk
substituted for meaningful conflict resolution.
Conditions in Palestine became worse. The November 2007 Annapolis
travesty was next. Quartet participation was involved.
Perhaps for the first time ever, the legitimate
government of one side was excluded. Discussions were doomed from the
start. They were orchestrated to fail. Palestinians
never had a legitimate partner and don't now. Good
faith negotiations aren't possible. Talks are a charade. They still
are. Israel's latest scheme is thinly veiled duplicity
to maintain occupation harshness and give Palestinians
nothing in return. It's hard imagining Abbas and
other PA officials would agree. Don't be surprised if
they do in some form. A Final Comment On November 12, Haaretz said
Netanyahu "quietly doubled" settlement construction
funding. Finance Minister Yuval Steinitz admitted it. Doing so was done quietly to
avoid policy debates. Note the duplicity. On the one
hand, settlement construction will accelerate. So will
land theft and Palestinian displacement. At the same time, Israel proposes
recognizing Palestinian statehood without
acknowledging it already exists. By the time all valued West Bank
and East Jerusalem areas are stolen, what's left may
be little more than isolated bantustans on worthless
scrubland. Stephen Lendman lives in
Chicago and can be reached at lendmanstephen@sbcglobal.net.
His new book is titled "How Wall Street Fleeces
America: Privatized Banking, Government Collusion and
Class War"
http://www.claritypress.com/Lendman.html Visit his
blog site at sjlendman.blogspot.com and listen to
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