Monday, May 2, 2005
So Natan Sharansky has quit Israel's cabinet. He's certainly got strong principles. Sadly, most won't get past the headlines which indicate that he's quitting due to the Gaza withdrawal which makes it sound like he's some sort of territorial zealot. The truth is, he believes that not enough is being done to hold Palestinians responsible for changes in their own society, and that withdrawal should be coupled with these changes - the only path to real peace. Silly Natan, doesn't he know that the Palestinian Arabs are never responsible for themselves?
I suggest reading past the headline and trying to understand what he's about.
This piece, published in today's Boston Globe (of all places) and linked at the Middle East Forum helps explain a bit more: Retreat from Gaza:
Respected centrist journalist, Yossi Klein Halevi: "If unilateral withdrawal could happen in a void, it would be the right decision But it is not happening in a void . . . The psychological implications are to reinforce the post-Lebanon withdrawal perception in the Arab world that we are a defeatist society and with enough pressure we'll simply withdraw."
Indeed, Ariel Sharon himself could not have been clearer at the time: "A unilateral withdrawal is not a recipe for peace. It is a recipe for war."
If these criticisms are correct, then unilaterally withdrawing from Gaza is a victory for terrorism; bloodshed is likely to flow from it, and Sharon of all people must know it...
