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It is the declared policy of the United States government (and of most of the world) that in order to bring peace to the Middle East, the creation of a Palestinian state – the two-state solution – is indispensable. Even many Israelis have come to agree with that. But it is generally understood and taken for granted that such a state, which would essentially consist of Judea/Samaria (the “West Bank”) and Gaza, would have to be totally demilitarized. What are the facts? Israel is a very small country. Israel is surrounded by enemies. It is a very small country. Including the Golan and the “West Bank,” it is only one-half the size of San Bernardino county in California. Israel concluded peace with Egypt in 1978 and some years later with Jordan. Most other Arab states are still in a declared or undeclared state of war with Israel. Iran, Muslim though not Arab, is the most determined and deadly of them all. It lurks in the back- ground, its foremost military and political objective being the destruction of the State of Israel, which is quite openly declared. Recent events in Gaza, regrettably, are an indicator of what Israel could expect from an independent Palestinian state, even though declared to be “demilitarized.” Hamas, the terror organization in control of Gaza, has lobbed close to 10,000 rockets into Israel. Until now, these rockets have been of relatively poor quality, of fairly short range, and of limited accuracy. Even so, they have caused much damage and injuries and have put the Israeli localities affected into an almost constant state of alarm, making normal life impossible. Even after the hard lesson that Israel taught Hamas in the recent short war, the terror continues: rockets fall almost daily on the Israeli cities within range. But, supplied by Iran and China, and smuggled through tunnels from the Sinai into Gaza, much more sophisticated rockets are now making their appearance. Larger population centers such as Beersheba and Jerusalem are coming within range. Demilitarization is a myth. Nobody can reasonably doubt that even if Israel, under the never-ending pressure of world opinion, were to relinquish control of the “West Bank,” a scenario similar to what happened and continues to happen in Gaza would prevail. Even if the “West Bank” Palestinians would wish not to become an armed camp similar to Gaza, the reality is that the Arab nations would not allow that. In contrast to Gaza, which is isolated from the world and which can be reached only through tunnels made and used under the “watchful eyes” of the cooperating Egyptians, the “West Bank” is totally accessible. The “Palestinian Authority,” which is in control of the “West Bank,” has thousands of trained soldiers disguised as police. Those so-called police are poised to be helicoptered in minutes to positions on the border with Israel, with armed forces from Syria reaching them within the same night. But such mobilization of the “demilitarized” Palestine would not even be required. As the Gaza experience shows, the weapons of preference of the Palestinian terrorists are rockets – either the Qassam, which are raining on Israel from Gaza, the Soviet-made Katyushas – highly efficient, truck-mounted and mobile, which are ideal for hit-and-run raids against Israel – or the even more advanced Iranian and Chinese missiles, that are now in the pipeline. Israel could not prevent them from flooding the “West Bank.” A look at the map makes clear that even with the missiles of present performance and a hostile and not at all “demilitarized” Palestine covering Israel with missiles from Gaza and from the Judean ridges of the “West Bank,” virtually all of Israel would be under the Palestinian guns, from every point of the border, which would by then have lengthened from about 60 miles to over 200 miles. Virtually all of Israel’s population centers would be within range. So would virtually all of the country’s industrial centers, the military establishments and the country’s only international airport. Life in Israel would quite literally grind to a standstill. While the idea of a Palestinian state may have some merit, there is abundant proof – the most recent being the continuing rocket attacks from Gaza – that such a state, whatever the promises at its creation, would represent an immediate existential threat to Israel. There has never been such a Palestinian state and the creation of such a state is not the primary nor even the secondary goal of the Arabs. Their primary and never-changing goal – overshadowing everything else – is the destruction of Israel – “wiping it off the map,” to use the fanatic Muslims’ favorite phrase. After unwisely having turned Gaza over to the Palestinians, yielding the “West Bank” to its sworn enemies would make Israel indefensible. Israel would be laying the groundwork for its own destruction. Tanks, warplanes, and infantry battalions would only be needed for the final mopping-up process. In the meantime, the missile batteries located in Gaza and on the Judean ridges – Israel’s proposed new borders – would suffice to paralyze life and industrial activity in Israel. One can only hope that the Israeli people and Israel’s new government under “Bibi” Netanyahu will understand this peril and will act accordingly. This ad has been published and paid
for by
Gerardo Joffe, President
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