The two-state solution is dead

By Khalid Amayreh in occupied East Jerusalem

"Like confused, disoriented children, Palestinian leaders and politicians keep babbling about building a Palestinian state in the West Bank and Gaza Strip, with East Jerusalem as its capital, as if the prospect of creating such a state is still real. Some of these leaders, like PA president Mahmoud Abbas and his “eternally-optimistic” Prime Minister Salam Fayadh, even have the audacity to refer to their hapless Ramallah fief as “state of Palestine.”

I really can’t comprehend how these people, who are entrusted with the national burden, continue to deceive themselves and their people, in such a scandalous and obscene manner, by incessantly talking about an impossible state that will never ever see the light, not now or after fifty years.Are they drunk? Are they blind? Are they stupid?....

Israel simply has killed that possibility by building as many as 200 Jewish towns and colonies on the very small territory these misguided leaders are still dreaming of building their putative state. Moreover, Israel has already transferred over half a million fanatical settlers onto the West Bank and East Jerusalem, which really renders any prospect of establishing a Palestinian state worthy of the name utterly unrealistic if not outright impossible......

Arafat’s successors, who have apparently decided to place themselves squarely into Israel’s and America’s laps, mainly in order to isolate Hamas at any price and by whatever means necessary, don’t have the courage to recognize the obvious, namely that there is no real prospect for a Palestinian state.......

Of course, Israel doesn’t like to hear anything about the death of the two-state solution. Israel wants the two-state solution to die practically a quiet and gradual death but hopes to keep it alive formally. This is exactly what has happened as the Israeli government continues to assert its commitment to Palestinian statehood while doing everything possible on the ground to eviscerate such a prospective state of substance......

Needless to say, such a hapless and disfigured entity, the kind of which Israel and her guardian-ally would be a solution for Zionism’s demographic problem, not for the Palestinian question. It is a “state” onto which Israel would eventually dump all unwanted Palestinians, including Israel’s own Palestinian citizens…because “Israel is a Jewish state and you are not Jews.”!!!!.....

Israel will continue to create facts on the ground all over the West Bank until it reaches the point at which a further expansion becomes undesirable. At that point, Israel would appeal “earnestly” to “our Palestinian cousins to come to the peace table and, please, give peace a chance.”......

The deceitful, poisoned words, reflecting “the New Israel” would leave an instant positive impression on Naïve Europeans and North Americans, and the Jewish-controlled media in the west, especially in North America, would just parrot and prominently feature “the earnest calls for peace coming from Israel”.......

Furthermore, the American congress would hold a special session to endorse and bless Israel’s peace drive and to urge the Arabs and especially Palestinians to be realistic and abandon the “culture of hate.” Even the UN Security Council would hold a special session at US request, praising Israel’s “good-will toward the Palestinians,” and calling on Palestinians to reciprocate.

In short, the whole world would celebrate the final consummation of the murder of Palestine. And in case the frustrated and thoroughly tormented Palestinians cried out for justice, they would harshly be silenced and accused of wanting to perpetuate war and conflict and set the clock of time backward when peace was finally getting a real chance. There is no doubt that this is Israel’s ultimate plan for the Palestinians and their homeland......

But there is still a slim chance to avert the unthinkable which is not really unpredictable, given the history of the Middle East. This chance lies in the creation of a single democratic and civil state in the area extending from the Mediterranean to the River Jordan. In such a state, Israelis and Palestinians can live in peace and equality, without any discrimination based on religion, color or race.

It is either one state for all, or war, death and destruction for many many years to come. Because Palestinians, who already make up 50% of the population of Palestine-Israel are here to stay. They won’t leave. And they won’t accept occupation and apartheid forever."