Former Israeli defense minister Moshe Arens, now a columnist for Ha’aretz, wishes the Palestinian state on Jordan and Egypt.
I say wishes because it’s wishful thinking to think that Egypt will take over Gaza or Jordan will absorb the West Bank. Arens acknowledges as much, but says that could change if the reason for Gaza and the West Bank’s undesirability — that they’re breeding grounds for terrorism — changes. He writes:
If Palestinian terrorism were to be eliminated, the attitude of the key players – Israel, Jordan and Egypt – would most likely change, and options that are not realistic at this time might become acceptable. The obvious implication of this analysis is that the immediate goal of those who seek to improve the situation should be eliminating Palestinian terrorism, and that no substantial political progress is likely to be achieved until that mission is accomplished. And as the IDF’s success in combating terrorism in the West Bank in recent years has shown, this is not an impossible mission.
Imposing a "two-state" solution at this time is not feasible, and stubbornly insisting that it is the only future solution, to the exclusion of all others, could very well be counterproductive. It is time to look at some other paradigms.
