As a long-time supporter of a two-state solution in Israel-Palestine, I can only mourn the success the settlers and the Israeli and US governments have found in destroying that path. But reality is reality, and I’ve been saying for some time that the Oslo process is dead. So what to do now? A single state is already a reality, and it is an ugly one. I examine an alternative and the prospects for getting there at Souciant this week.
Posts Tagged ‘Yisrael Beiteinu’
The One-State Solution
Posted in One-State Solution, Zionism, tagged Arab Spring, East Jerusalem, Fatah, Gaza Strip, Habayit Hayehudi, Hamas, Israel, John Kerry, Likud, Mahmoud Abbas, Meretz, Occupied Territories, One-State Solution, Palestine, Two-state solution, United States, West Bank, Yair Lapid, Yesh Atid, Yisrael Beiteinu, Zionism on April 26, 2013 | Leave a Comment »
Panicked Bibi Shoots Himself In the Foot in Merger with Lieberman
Posted in Israel, Likud, tagged Aryeh Deri, Avigdor Lieberman, Benjamin Netanyahu, Benny Begin, Dan Meridor, Ehud Olmert, Israel, Labor Party, Likud, Middle east, Netanyahu, Shas, Shelly Yachimovich, Tzipi Livni, Yair Lapid, Yesh Atid, Yisrael Beiteinu on October 25, 2012 | 5 Comments »
I’ve long suspected it, but now I’m convinced: Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has lost his mind. His announcement todayof forming a joint list with Yisrael Beiteinu and Avigdor Lieberman reeks of a panic not rooted in any sense of reality. And this time, it’s not about “the Arabs” or Iran, but about the upcoming election. It’s proof positive that the man running Israel, and who is going to continue to run Israel for the foreseeable future, is a frightened, perhaps even paranoid, reactionary man.
Consummating their love and uniting the right: Avigdor Lieberman and Benjamin Netanyahu
According to Yediot Akhronot’s web site, YNet, Bibi made the decision to do this because polls indicate Likud would lose a few seats in the next elections (sorry, the report is not available in English at this time). Netanyahu wants to be the leader of the next Knesset’s biggest party, not the second biggest as he currently is. So, he threw in his lot with Lieberman and his explicit fascism.
I think this move is going to backfire on Bibi in a number of ways. First of all, this is going to alienate a number of very high profile Likud members. Some will be seeing this as coming at their expense, especially those in top positions right now who will be bumped at least one rung, perhaps more, lower on the list and in their positions in the next cabinet. Others, like Dan Meridor, Benny Begin and more, are going to bristle sharply at having to work this closely with Lieberman. It would not surprise me to see several prominent Likud figures bolt.
Second, whereas before the so-called super-bloc of “center-left” parties was largely a media invention, Netanyahu has now given it much more impetus. While Yair Lapid and his Yesh Atid may still be more interested in making their own mark on the electorate, the more seasoned Labor and Kadima parties are going to find that they have little choice but to join forces now in some way. That won’t matter to Bibi…unless Ehud Olmert and Tzipi Livni re-enter the fray, which make Kadima meaningful again and would combine well with a Labor Party that Shelly Yachimovitch has kept at a steady second place in polls for months. (more…)
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