"Palestinian sovereignty on Israeli citizens would be dangerous, for the Palestinians would kill them. Not a pleasant possibility!"
By JERUSALEM POST READERSBennett’s claimSir, – With regard to “Netanyahu accepts Bennett’s ‘apology’ over remarks, ending coalition crisis” (January 30), Bayit Yehudi leader Naftali Bennett was basically not far wrong when he repeated that imposing Palestinian sovereignty on Israeli citizens would be dangerous, for the Palestinians would kill them. Not a pleasant possibility! Perhaps if he had used the word “might” instead of “would,” his speech would have been tempered somewhat. Still, if there is any such chance of being killed while having to live under Palestinian sovereignty, I very much doubt any Israel citizen in his right mind would agree to any plan of giving up this land.All the conjecture is probably a sheer waste of time, as the Jew-hating Palestinian Authority president, Mahmoud Abbas, has vehemently declared that not one Jew will be allowed to live there.So cool it, boys.URI MILUNSKYHerzliyaSir, – Many Israelis would agree with Naftali Bennett’s claim that Jews left in a Palestinian state would ultimately be massacred.In every country surrounding Israel, Muslims kill each other over differences in their interpretations of faith. Yet the one unifying factor among all these Muslim sects is their pathological hatred of Jews and Israel, which expresses itself in the same manner as did that of the Nazis prior to their taking power in Germany in the 1930s.Defense Minister Moshe Ya’alon’s faux pas regarding US Secretary of State John Kerry’s plans might have been just that.But he said what most Israelis are feeling. Add to that Bennett’s comment and we have a consensus of opinion.
This does not necessarily preclude an arrangement with the Palestinians granting them jurisdiction/ sovereignty over large parts of the West Bank. But let us be realistic and honest about any such proposal.ALLAN LEIBLERJerusalemSir, – Why do the “Palestinian” Arabs and the larger Arab world simultaneously object so stridently to the recognition of Israel as the nation-state of the Jewish people, and to the continued residency of Jews in a prospective state of Palestine? The answer emerges once it is understood that the Arab world (including its “Palestinian” component) has always regarded Jews as having no right to live unhindered in – let alone rule – any portion of the biblical Land of Israel.By recognizing Israel as a Jewish state and/or by accepting continued Jewish residency in a future Palestinian state, the Arabs would, in effect, be implicitly conceding – contrary to everything it has come to believe since its 7th-century invasion of the Land of Israel and has continued to teach its children – that the Jewish people do, indeed, have a legitimate presence as both rulers and residents.Such an admission of Jewish rights, albeit grounded in history, international law and morality, is so unthinkable that no Arab leader would ever countenance it.MARK ROSENBLITModi’inSir, – With tempers flaring over whether Israeli settlements should remain under Palestinian rule, it’s time to think outside the box. I have a proposal that should solve the conflict once and for all.All Israeli territory will be relinquished to the State of Palestine except for one affluent neighborhood in Tel Aviv, preferably with a shopping mall. The city-state of Israel will have two safe-passage corridors, one to Ben-Gurion Airport, the other to the Western Wall.This plan is win-win. The Palestinians will have their state and Israelis can continue to fly to Europe for their vacations and have photo ops at the Kotel for bar mitzva celebrations.JONATHAN FISHERJerusalemLaunch a campaignSir, – Maj.-Gen. Aviv Kochavi talks of the missiles threatening us (“Kochavi: 170,000 rockets and missiles threaten Israel,” January 30). On the same page we read that IAF commander Maj.- Gen. Amir Eshel says Hezbollah has put thousands of bases in residential buildings from which it could fire much, if not most, of its reported 100,000 missiles – a number that is 60 percent higher than official 2013 assessments, according to Defense Minister Moshe Ya’alon.Israel must launch a massive public information campaign immediately to demand that the US, UN, NATO and EU condemn this flagrant violation of human rights and laws of war. The past failures of these organizations to enforce the explicit restrictions on Hezbollah laid out in the cease-fire treaty they endorsed after the 2006 Second Lebanon War, including an international monitoring force, are only slightly less criminal.It is comforting to know that we now have a much more powerful military than we did then.But our miserable performance in defending our civilians from these threats, along with the impotence of the West, suggest that a military response to the new threat will not adequately protect our civilians, and a repeat of one-sided and ultimately paralyzing condemnations of Israel by the “free world” is certain to be repeated.HARVEY LITHWICK MeitarObscene statements Sir, – As a Jew who passionately believes in a two-state solution with secure borders, I am offended by Finance Minister Yair Lapid’s obscene statements (“Lapid: EU could cancel central treaty with Israel if peace talks fail,” January 30).Lapid is presently moving to the far Left when he puts the onus of possible failed peace on Israel. Let him publicly say that he is willing to give up the Jordan Valley and accept 5,000,000 children of former refugees in order to agree to Palestinian terms. Either one of the Palestinian demands would spell the end of this country.Lapid should recognize that the EU (and US President Barack Obama and his supporters) would love to eulogize the end of Israel.Instead of repeatedly talking about EU blackmail against Israel, our finance minister and other leaders should reach out forcefully to the more than 100,000,000 Christians around the world who support us. They know Israel has several times made generous offers of a just peace.Israel should marshal these righteous Christians in two ways.One, encourage them to buy more Israeli products. Two, urge them to expose the evil intent of the EU and to boycott, divest from and sanction those institutions that do so to Israel.NISSIM BAHARAshdodLetting her knowSir, – With great support for your January 30 editorial admirably criticizing the statement made by Catherine Aston on behalf of the European Union (“Ashton’s lapse”), I sent the following to her and look forward to her response, if any.“Dear Lady Ashton: People have inquired of me as to why you did not refer to the three identifiable groups that were the main victims of the Nazis – the Jews, the gypsies and the homosexuals.Reference to these groups would have identified the historic horror of that time.Would you consider remedying this omission, perhaps including the numbers slaughtered in order to complete the record?” We should notify Ashton in the future of any unhappiness we have with her regarding our concerns!MICHAEL BRUNERTModi’inSir, – Regarding your excellent editorial, the omission of the word “Jewish” from Catherine Ashton’s comments proves she is anti-Semitic. This, from the sanctimonious EU! So, if a boycott by the EU is coming, as Finance Minister Yair Lapid fears, we will just have to carry on as we normally do in times of trouble, and not worry about the double standards and hypocrisy. We cannot allow ourselves to be blackmailed or bullied to concede to all the demands of Palestinian Authority President Mahmoud Abbas, which will never lead to peace anyway.We will survive. We will just have to rein in the economy as necessary and deal with it.HILTON SHARENetanya