France: If New Peace Initiative Fails, We'll Recognize Palestine

[Jefferson23]

Foreign Minister Fabius announces new French-led international peace summit, saying France has a 'responsibility' to not let two-state solution die.

Barak Ravid Jan 29, 2016 9:25 PM


French Foreign Minister Laurent Fabius announced Friday that France will try to convene an international peace summit in the next few weeks to renew diplomatic efforts between Israeli and the Palestinians. Fabius threatened that should the diplomatic offensive fail, France will formally recognize a Palestinian state.

Israel rejected the initiative, with a senior official in Jerusalem saying the threat to recognize Palestine only encourages Palestinians not to negotiate.

Speaking in Paris at a conference of French diplomats, Fabius said "unfortunately, [Israeli] settlement construction continues. We must not let the two-state solution unravel. It is our responsibility as a permanent member of the UN Security Council."

Fabius noted that France hopes the international peace summit will be attended by Israelis and Palestinians, as well as other international actors like the U.S., EU states and Arab nations.

read more: http://www.haaretz.com/israel-news/1.700320

[shira]

1. So the PA & Hamas have no reason at all to agree to peace...

...when they can get what they want by continuing to say "No" to anything Israel offers.

[COLGATE4]

2. Seems like a fool proof

plan.: sarcasm::

[Jefferson23]

3. I already know what Bibi thinks, no need for you to repeat it. n/t

[aranthus]

6. It's common sense.

You can't just dismiss the idea because Bibi happens to agree with it.

[Jefferson23]

20. I'm not, I'm dismissing it because it's bullshit and I don't need to be reminded

that Israel's PM pushes it.

[azurnoir]

4. Israel offers? exactly what belongs to Israel that it presumes to the right to offer?

[aranthus]

5. The West Bank and Jerusalem of course.

Also, the legitimate blockade of Gaza. also the opening up of borders to trade, and everything else that comes with peaceful relations. More importantly, peace negotiations aren't a one way street where Israel just gives the Palestinians whatever they want. Israel has legitimate claims and concerns here. Among them: (1) an end to the conflict, (2) recognition of Israel as a Jewish state, and (3) dropping RoR. The Palestinians have refused to agree to any of those, and there can't be peace until they do agree. But if they think that they can get the West Bank and Jerusalem without having to actually agree to make peace with Israel, then they will take that option. If you could get what you want either by giving up something of value to you, or you could get it for nothing, wouldn't you hold out for getting it for free? So will the Palestinians.

[azurnoir]

7. by what mertric does the West Bank and East Jerusalem belong to Israel?

and while you ramble on about legitimate claims if that is true then the Palestinians have as legitimate a claim to Israel inside the green line- but reasonable people know that ancestral claims must be put aside

[aranthus]

8. Legitimate possession.

By what metric is the Palestinian refusal to actually make peace with Israel justified?

[azurnoir]

9. legitimate possession? conquered territory is not considered legitimate possession

the Palestinians have negotiated the last collapsed because the Israelis reneged on their own deal

[oberliner]

21. Who was the territory conquered from?

What state has a legitimate claim?

[azurnoir]

22. the new talking point to justify continued settlement? when was it modern Israel?

it was never Israel, it was Jordan and recognized as such, and oh I know where this goes

[King_David]

10. We not talking "rights"-Israel has it in possession now ...

If they want it - it's only gonna be by peace and security- rights have nothing to do with this.

[azurnoir]

11. Lol reread your comment seems one sides rights are everything and the others nothing

at least to some here although a Palestinian state based on the pre-June 1967 lines with East Jerusalem as its capital possibly even shared capital seems reasonable to me

[King_David]

12. Whatever happens, I do not think what seems reasonable to outsiders will factor into anything

The Jewish state is here to stay,safe and secure.
Even if it means unilateral action.

[Little Tich]

13. If only Israel could stop building in the settlements, even only for a short time,

perhaps a recognition of a Palestinian state wouldn't have to be necessary.

If there was no building in the settlements, there would be less urgency in any negotiations, and they could continue for as long as necessary without things changing on the ground. This is just a way to reward Netanyahu for building more settlements.

[shira]

15. (Nov 2015) Settlements authorised after 18-month freeze

Now what were you saying about a settlement freeze?

After an 18-month settlement freeze, Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu told a group of right-wing politicians this week that he would authorise 454 new flats in the Jerusalem neighbourhood of Ramat Shlomo, which lies beyond the Green Line.

Mr Netanyahu has stressed that he has been blocking new building projects in the West Bank and east Jerusalem due to international pressure. In the past 18 months, the only settlement to receive building permits was Bet El.

The buildings in strictly-Orthodox Ramat Shlomo had been authorised in the past, but the planning process was frozen for over a year.

The green light is seen as a concession by Mr Netanyahu to his pro-settlement coalition partners and was postponed until this week to avoid new tension with the Obama administration ahead of last week's White House meeting.

The building permits are just one of a number of gestures made by the prime minister to the right wing, which include outlawing the northern branch of the Islamic Movement. The group has been accused of inciting violence on Temple Mount.

http://www.thejc.com/news/israel-news/149621/settlements-authorised-after-18-month-freeze

[Little Tich]

16. Two can play that game...

CBS: Housing finishes in West Bank settlements up by 219% in 2015’s first quarter
Source: Jerusalem Post, 06/10/2015

“Israel does not have to be afraid to build in Judea and Samaria. When Israelis are absent, terror reigns,” said Yigal Dilmoni, the deputy head of Council of Jewish Communities of Judea and Samaria.

Settlement construction in the West Bank rose sharply in the first quarter of 2015, with a 219 percent spike in completed housing and a 93% rise in starts, according to data released by Israel’s Central Bureau of Statistics on Tuesday.

The increase that occurred just prior to the March 17 election was not reflected in the CBS data on nationwide building, which showed that completed housing went up by 15.5 % and the starts dropped by 2%. The report, which focused mostly on the housing situation across the country, was released in the midst of an increased push by the international community to boycott Israel over the issue of settlement construction.

“Israel does not have to be afraid to build in Judea and Samaria. When Israelis are absent, terror reigns,” said Yigal Dilmoni, the deputy head of Council of Jewish Communities of Judea and Samaria.

“We are please that there is growth and we are happy for every home that is built,” Dilmoni said.

Read more: http://www.jpost.com/Israel-News/Settler-construction-up-sharply-in-first-quarter-405556



West Bank Settlement Expansion Surged Under Netanyahu
Source: Haaretz, Dec 15, 2014

According to figures the growth rate in the settlement was more than twice that of Israel proper between 2009 to 2014.

The population of Jewish settlers in the occupied West Bank has surged during Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu's years in office, growing at more than twice the pace of Israel's overall population, according to newly obtained official figures.

Settlement growth also was strong beyond Israel's separation barrier, seen by many as the basis for a border between Israel and a future Palestinian state.

The figures reflect Netanyahu's continued support for settlement construction, even while repeatedly stating his commitment to the eventual establishment of an independent Palestinian state as part of a future peace agreement. They also could be a topic of discussion as U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry meets with Netanyahu and European officials this week over a promised UN Security Council proposal dealing with the Israeli-Palestinian conflict.

While Israeli leaders of all political persuasions have built settlements for decades, the U.S. and western allies have dwindling patience for their construction.

Read more: http://www.haaretz.com/israel-news/1.631924

[shira]

17. Here's another Haaretz article...

Israel Approves New West Bank Homes, Marking End of Informal Building Freeze

After almost two years, Civil Administration and other planning and building bodies have approved construction of 153 residential units in Samaria and East Jerusalem.

Israeli planning authorities approved the construction of 153 new apartments in West Bank settlements last week, effectively putting an end to an informal construction freeze that has lasted about 18 months.

For almost two years now, the government has largely refused to advance new building plans in the territories, due to fear that the U.S. administration would retaliate by refusing to veto anti-Israel resolutions in the UN Security Council. The only plans that did move forward involved either legalization of existing outposts or master plans for areas where petitions to the High Court of Justice spurred the government to act.

read more: http://www.haaretz.com/israel-news/.premium-1.699454

[Little Tich]

18. Just because Israel hasn't started up any new communities recently,

doesn't mean that the current settlements aren't expanding.

Every single home built in any of the settlements changes circumstances on the ground, making the two-state solution even more impossible.

A "freeze" that results in a net increase of the building rate of 216% in the settlements, is only a building freeze in Newspeak.

[Little Tich]

14. This is good for Palestine, good for Israel, but bad for Netanyahu... n/t

[geek tragedy]

19. France is stepping into the void left by the USA's withdrawal

from this dispute. Have at it, mes amis.