Israel Matzav

A trial balloon for a 'Palestinian' state reichlet

The offices of both Prime Minister Ehud K. Olmert and President Shimon Peres are denying a Haaretz report - which had allegedly been confirmed by Peres' office - that Israel is going to offer the 'Palestinians' a state reichlet on the equivalent of 100% of the land area of Judea and Samaria by means of an exchange of land and populations. Let's start with the Haaretz report:

Aides to President Shimon Peres confirmed Tuesday a Haaretz report that Prime Minister Ehud Olmert is examining a new framework for peace, in which Israel will propose transferring to the Palestinian state areas equivalent to 100 percent of the territories conquered in 1967.

According to the aides, the proposal was formulated while Peres was vice premier, and presented to Olmert a few days after he entered the President's Residence.

The PMO, however, denied the existance of the proposal Tuesday. "We do not know of any plan as described in the [Haaretz] article," the prime minister's office said in a statement. "We would like to clarify that such a plan has not been considered, nor is it being raised for discussion in any forum."

The proposal includes a timetable for negotiations for the final status agreement and implementing it, similar to the framework of the Peres-Abu Ala agreement reached at the end of 2001.

Israel will suggest to the Palestinians to conduct negotiations for adequate territorial compensation from Israel's sovereign territory, in exchange for settlement blocs amounting to about 5 percent of the West Bank's area.

Israel is also examining various options of exchanging settlement blocs with Arab community blocs within Israel, in agreement with the residents. An agreement on this issue would enable Yisrael Beiteinu, headed by Avigdor Lieberman, to remain in the coalition.

And here's the JPost denial:

The offices of Prime Minister Ehud Olmert and President Shimon Peres vigorously denied a report in Tuesday's Ha'aretz newspaper alleging that they crafted a plan to establish a Palestinian state on the equivalent of 100 percent of the land in the West Bank.

"We are not aware of any such plan described in the article," Olmert's office said in the most strongly worded denial the office has ever issued. "It is not being considered or discussed. We are amazed by the false report, which was published without asking for a response or checking whether it was true."

According to the plan, Israel would maintain settlement blocs totaling five percent of the West Bank and compensate the Palestinians with land inside pre-1967 Israel from blocs of Arab communities, with the residents' acquiescence. The paper said Peres presented the plan to Olmert after he became president.

Olmert said at a Kadima event two weeks ago that he would welcome Peres's involvement in diplomatic issues, but Peres's associates said the plan published fits more with the ideology of Strategic Affairs Minister Avigdor Lieberman.

A similar plan is the diplomatic platform of Lieberman's Israel Beiteinu party. But even he distanced himself from the report in a statement released Tuesday.

"I welcome the acceptance of my idea of population exchanges, because there is no other solution," Lieberman said. "The solution must include all of the settlement blocs and leave Jerusalem united under Israeli sovereignty. But there is no sense in talking about a Palestinian state until the PA proves itself.

This is the kind of 'trial balloon' that Ariel Sharon used to use Olmert to float.

My gut reaction to this is that it is true, except for the part about population exchanges which, as Peres points out, is part of Avigdor Lieberman's platform and which will in any event never be agreed upon since it says "with the residents' acquiescence." The Arabs in Wadi Ara (the territory that Lieberman was thinking about - it's east southeast of Haifa) are not stupid enough to believe their leaders' rhetoric and choose to live in 'Palestine' rather than Israel. For that matter, their leaders aren't that stupid either.

But the rest of it is right in line with Ehud Barak's attempts to trade the Halutza area of the Negev for 'settlement bloc' area at Taba in January 2001 with the difference that they are apparently now guaranteeing the 'Palestinians' that they will be 'compensated' on a 1:1 basis. No one really knows what went on in Taba other than those who were there, but there have been accusations that Barak was trying to trade land at a much higher ratio in favor of Israel. Olmert and Peres are apparently now saying that they won't make that 'mistake' again.

But the timetable, for example, which would absolve the 'Palestinians' of fulfilling their agreements, has Shimon Peres written all over it. The 5% they allegedly want to keep is actually less than the approximately 8% that are supposedly being coopted into Israel as a result of the 'security fence.' And it's not clear what is meant to happen in Jerusalem. Note that it is only Lieberman above who refers to a 'united Jerusalem under Israeli sovereignty. Olmert has already said that he will divide Jerusalem.

With Olmert clinging to power and Bush essentially a lame duck trying to ensure his legacy, these are very dangerous times for the Jews of Israel.

posted by Carl in Jerusalem @ 2:10 AM