[Note for TomDispatch Readers: Consider it strange — or perhaps not strange at all — that when, in April 2010, the remarkable Noam Chomsky wrote his first piece for TomDispatch (adapted from his book of that moment Hopes and Prospects), its subject was — yes! — the devastation Israel was already causing in — yes, again! — Gaza and the way it was expanding control over and settlements on the West Bank. Fourteen years ago, he focused, in part, on that country’s “criminal siege” of Gaza (including the fact that, even then, the Israelis were allowing in too few trucks with food and other aid). Oh, and guess who was prime minister at that moment? Yep, one Benjamin Netanyahu. Even then, Chomsky concluded all too sadly and aptly that U.S. policy (as now) was helping to ensure that the phrase “Palestinian state” would mean “fried chicken.”
Oh, and on this rare weekend I’ve taken off while posting a distinctly “best of TD” piece, let me thank those of you who, in recent weeks, have been so kind as to offer this site a distinct and deeply appreciated financial hand. Let me also urge any of you who are TomDispatch regulars and haven’t done so to consider visiting our donation page at this very moment to ensure that this site makes it through another year (its 23rd on this strange planet of ours). Your help truly does make all the difference! Tom]
A Middle East Peace That Could Happen (But Won’t)
In Washington-Speak, “Palestinian State” Means “Fried Chicken”
The fact that the Israel-Palestine conflict grinds on without resolution might appear to be rather strange. For many of the world’s conflicts, it is difficult even to conjure up a feasible settlement. In this case, it is not only possible, but there is near universal agreement on its basic contours: a two-state settlement along the internationally recognized (pre-June 1967) borders -- with “minor and mutual modifications,” to adopt official U.S. terminology before Washington departed from the international community in the mid-1970s.
The basic principles have been accepted by virtually the entire world, including the Arab states (who go on to call for full normalization of relations), the Organization of Islamic States (including Iran), and relevant non-state actors (including Hamas). A settlement along these lines was first proposed at the U.N. Security Council in January 1976 by the major Arab states. Israel refused to attend the session. The U.S. vetoed the resolution, and did so again in 1980. The record at the General Assembly since is similar.
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