WhatsappWe just witnessed a historic evening. For the first time ever, the world was introduced to a peace plan, what President Trump called a vision, that is based on reality!
Even with all of our concerns, we must give a huge thank you to President Trump, Jared Kushner, Jason Greenblatt and US Ambassador to Israel David Freidman for their hard work in developing this plan based on reality.
What reality? The reality that it is impossible to talk about peace when the Palestinian Authority incites children to kill Jews! A reality where the Palestinian Authority pays terrorists and their families! A reality where Hamas has weapons and rockets to shoot at Israel whenever they want! While all the moral and enlightened people of the world ignored those, and many other evil transgressions of our “peace” partners, President Trump finally said stop! Stop all this evil, and then negotiations can begin. But until then, Israel will receive what will always remain a part of Israel, all the Jewish communities in the ancestral, biblical land of Judea and Samaria!
What does Israel receive: The USA recognizes that the Jordan Valley will remain part of Israel as Israel’s eastern border and therefore Israel can apply sovereignty there immediately. The USA also recognizes that all the communities in Judea and Samaria will remain a part of Israel and therefore Israel can apply sovereignty to those communities immediately as well.
This vision is unbelievable and totally reasonable, based on reality.
There are also some aspects of Trump’s vision that are potentially dangerous. While I believe the Arabs will never fulfill the conditions to even begin negoations, Trump has set a precedent of the establishment of a state called Palestine on Jewish land. That can potentially be extremely dangerous, especially if a Democrat is elected President next and decides to wave the conditions and force the recognition of that state. However, Israel can deal with that danger with careful negotiations with the Trump administration regarding the vision/plan.
Trump’s main points:
- Jerusalem is Israel’s undivided capital
- The USA will immediately recognize Israel as sovereign as all land in Judea & Samaria as set out in the vision
- The days of suicide bombings and bus bombings are over. We will not compromise on Israeli security
- Nobody will be expelled from their homes, neither Jew nor Arab
Netanyahu’s main points:
- President Trump is the first leader to recognize Israel’s soveriegnty in Judea & Samaria
- For too long the world has looked at the ancestral lands of Judea & Samaria, where the Jewish nation was born, as “occupied land”. President Trump has just burst that lie. He recognizes Israeli soveriegnty in all Jewish communities in Judea & Samaria
- Israel will apply Israeli sovereignty in the Jordan Valley, in all the Jewish communities in Judea & Samaria and other areas
The USA recognizes that some of land in Judea & Samaria, outside of the Jewish communities, can be included in a state called Palestine, but only after negotiations between Israel and the Palestinian Authority. Negotiations would only begin after the Palestinian Authority follows the following preconditions:
- The Gaza strip must be demilitarized, meaning that Hamas must give up all its guns, rockets and munitions
- Stop all payments to terrorists and their families
- Stop all anti-Israel activities in the international courts
- Stop all incitement against Israel (including in school textbooks and television programs)
- Forbidden from joining any international organizations unless approved by Israel
- Recognizing Israel as the Jewish state
- Recognizing Israel’s new borders after Israel applies sovereignty to areas in Judea, Samaria and the Jordan Valley
- Recognition of Jerusalem as Israel’s undivided capital
- No right of return for descendants of Arab refugees from the 1948 war (that the Arabs started to destroy Israel and throw the Jews into the sea!)
Just a reminder, Arafat, and then Abbas, have said no to every peace deal ever offered to them, including offers where Israel would have expelled almost every Jew from Judea & Samaria (Prime Minister Olmert agreed to that plan!). And this time, they boycotted all talks with President Trump’s team. Once again, Trump recognized this reality and did not give in to them, like other Presidents, but made them pay a price for their behavior. An extremely welcome change of behavior by a President. No longer punishing Israel to make concessions to an unwilling partner, but punishing the unwilling partner instead. Like I said, finally a dose of reality from a US President!
So How to React?
As Bezalel Smotrich, Minister of Transportation from the right-wing Ichud Haleumi party, posted tonight:
“Such is the salvation of Israel. Little by little. Light and darkness mixing together.”
“We made tremendous strides this evening, even if it is imperfect.”
“American recognition of the biblical and historical right of the Jewish people to the entire Land of Israel is a significant stage of fulfillment in the words of the Prophets. A nation cannot be occupiers of its own country!”
That is exactly my attitude as well. There is much to be grateful for. We still have much work to do, but this is an amazing first step.
