One By One, Israel's Coalition Members Abandon Two-State Rhetoric

[Purveyor]

Economy Minister and Jewish Home Chairman Naftali Bennett is the latest MK to join a robust list of Israeli government coalition members who have publicly stated that the two-state solution is dead and that the notion of a Palestinian state is a thing of the past. Although it’s no new position for him, Bennett is making it clear that no matter what Prime Minister Netanyahu says or what polls show, the Israel of 2013 is squarely against a two-state solution.

Bennett stated that ”the idea of forming a Palestinian state in Israel has reached a dead end,” speaking at a settler council meeting Monday morning, comparing the “Palestinian problem” to a “piece of shrapnel” lodged in someone’s rear end; that one needs to learn to live with a pain in the ass rather than surgically remove it and risk becoming disabled.

Bennett also asserted there is no occupation, since Israeli Jews cannot be occupiers in their own home (echoing the Netanyahu-commissioned Levy Report from nearly a year ago that concluded there is no occupation) and called on Israel to annex Area C of the West Bank. This is similar to what Likud MK and former Knesset speaker Reuven Rivlin said last year: “Today, almost 20 years since Oslo, one could clearly argue that the idea of separating between the nations has failed … Between the Jordan River and the sea, there can only be one state, Jewish and democratic, with a solid Jewish majority.”

There are plenty of other coalition members who have publicly come out against the two-state solution and the possibility of a viable Palestinian state, as a Knesset committee meeting on the subject exposed last month. It’s not just fundamentalist Hebron settler Orit Struck from Jewish Home, who said two states are ”not part of the government’s guiding principles, and for good reason.”

MORE...

http://972mag.com/one-by-one-israels-coalition-members-abandon-two-state-rhetoric/73829/

[polly7]

1. Did any of them ever seriously entertain the idea at all?

I have my doubts.

Sad and depressing.

[azurnoir]

2. oh no not at all Danny Danon firmly believes in 2 states Israel and Jordan

too everyone can't be as honest and forthright as he is

http://occupiedpalestine.wordpress.com/2013/06/13/israeli-mk-danon-the-palestinian-future-is-in-jordan/

[oberliner]

3. Hamas leader vows never to recognize Israel (Dec 2012)

In case anyone forgot (he usually says something along these lines every year or so):

Hamas leader Khaled Meshaal, making his first ever visit to the Gaza Strip, vowed on Saturday never to recognize Israel and said his Islamist group would never abandon its claim to all Israeli territory.

"Palestine is ours from the river to the sea and from the south to the north. There will be no concession on an inch of the land," he told a sea of supporters at an open-air rally, the highlight of his three-day stay in Gaza.

"We will never recognize the legitimacy of the Israeli occupation and therefore there is no legitimacy for Israel, no matter how long it will take."

In an uncompromising speech, Meshaal also vowed to free Palestinian prisoners held in Israel, indicating Islamist militants would try to kidnap Israeli soldiers to use as a bargaining chip.

http://www.reuters.com/article/2012/12/08/us-palestinians-hamas-speech-idUSBRE8B708L20121208

[Scootaloo]

4. Equally relevant:

In the bowl of a mixer, combine 4 cups flour and salt. Add the yeast. In a small bowl, combine the milk and 2 tablespoons sugar. Add with the remaining milk to the flour. (If using dry yeast, mix the yeast with 2 tablespoons of the milk and 2 tablespoons sugar and let sit until foamy, about 5 to 10 minutes and add to the flour.)

Add the eggs and butter to the flour mixture. Begin to mix the ingredients into a soft, but not sticky, dough. Add a little extra milk, 1 tablespoon at a time. Work in extra flour, 1 tablespoon at a time. Turn the dough out onto a lightly floured surface and knead until smooth and elastic. (You can do this in a mixer fitted with a dough hook.) Transfer the dough to a lightly oiled bowl, cover, and let rise until doubled in size, about 2 hours.

Punch down the risen dough. Turn out onto a lightly floured surface and knead for a few seconds. With a lightly floured rolling pin, gradually roll out the dough to about 1/2-inch thick. When rolling dough, let it rest periodically to relax. Cut out into 3 to 4-inch rounds with a lightly floured biscuit cutter. Re-roll the scraps to make more rounds. Place the doughnuts on lightly floured baking sheets, spacing them apart, and cover lightly with a dry towel. Let rise in a warm spot until doubled in size, about 20 minutes.

Transfer the risen doughnuts to a heavy pot filled 3-inches high with vegetable oil at 350 degrees F. Fry the doughnuts, a few at a time, until golden and puffed, turning frequently, 5 to 7 minutes.

Read more at: http://www.foodnetwork.com/recipes/gale-gand/jelly-doughnuts-recipe/index.html?oc=linkback

So we've got Israel's rulers ditching what you and other "Liberal Zionist" posters here insist is the best (and only!) solution to the conflict, and your response is "HAMAS! HAMAS! HAMAS!" from... least year, is it?

[shira]

5. But Purveyor, you're against 2-states...

Shouldn't you be celebrating alongside Israel's 1-staters?