10 of the best from Bev this week

(1) The two-state delusion

Mordechai Nisan, Middle East Quarterly, Winter 2014

The Palestinian Arab leadership has consistently and adamantly rejected the two-state solution since its first articulation in 1937 by the British Peel commission and has, as consistently, advocated the destruction of the Jewish state.

(2) Mandela from a Jewish perspective

Colin Tatz, The Witness, 12 December 2013

Mandela’s links with the SA Jewish community are long and strong: and their intertwined histories make for fascinating reading.

(3) A missed funeral and the true meaning of Zionism

Ari Shavit, Haaretz, 12 December 2013

 We must make Israel the moral state it was meant to be, rather than playing into the hands of those who seek to push us into the world’s dark corner.

(4) Conflicting expectations from the Geneva Document between the P5+1 and Iran

Dore Gold, Jerusalem Centre for Public Affairs, 11 December 2013

 Both sides have very different expectations regarding the future of the sanctions on Iran. U.S. spokesmen argue that after the conclusion of the Geneva document, the core architecture of the sanctions remains firmly in place. In contrast, Iranian President Hassan Rouhani declared after the Geneva document was reached: The core architecture of the sanctions will be fractured following the implementation of this agreement.

(5) Saudis’ choice: Iran or Israel?

Dr Yaron Friedman, YNet News, 11 December 2013

Despite shared interests, there is little chance for normalization in Saudi-Israeli relations.

(6) Israel and the Syrian War: An interview with Eyal Zisser

Aron Lund, The Global Think Tank, 10 December 2013

Professor Zisser answers some questions on how he perceives the situation in Syria today and his view of Israeli government policy toward the Syrian conflict.

(7) In a rare deal, Israel, Jordan and the Palestinian Authority shake hands over one thing: Water

Nicholas Kamm, Huffington Post, 10 December 2013

This week, in a moment of rarity, Israel, Jordan and the Palestinian Authority signed a historic agreement at the World Bank headquarters in Washington, D.C., aimed at fostering water cooperation and initiating a project to help “save” the body of water.

(8) Benjamin Netanyahu’s refusal to attend Nelson Mandela’s memorial service speaks of Israel’s growing isolationism.

Matthew Norman, The Independent, 10 December 2013

The cynics and sneerers suspect that Bibi was scared of being booed in the stadium by those who remember that Israel was the apartheid regime’s last and doughtiest friend in the developed world, and by those who detect similarities, however vague, between the maltreatment of black South Africans and the subjugation of Palestinians in the occupied territories.

(9) Why isn’t Kerry listening to what the radicals are saying?

Khaled Abu Toameh, Gatestone Institute, 10 December 2013

Kerry needs to listen to what Hamas and other groups are saying in Arabic.  Hamas is not the only Palestinian party that would reject any U.S.-sponsored agreement. Most of the Palestinian groups…have already expressed their opposition to the Israeli-Palestinian peace talks.

(10) When did the Quakers stop being friends?

Asaf Romirowsky and Alexamde Joffe, Middle East Forum, December 2013

The camp’s main sponsor, the Quaker-affiliated and well-funded AFSC, has in recent years propelled itself to the forefront of the BDS campaign. This once-venerable group, a recipient of the Nobel Peace Prize and an influential member of the anti-war, pro-disarmament, and social justice movements, has become a leading proponent of anti-Israel activism. Their chosen method is to “support [BDS] campaigns which aim to end corporate support for Israel’s settlement policy and thereby contribute to ending settlement growth and construction.”