Official: Palestine established on PM, Lieberman's watch

Mike L. 

Day before UN expected to approve non-member state status for Palestinians, top Israeli official says 'when Lieberman butts heads with Abbas, this is the result.' Another official says Israel 'weaker in international arena'

"A Palestinian state was established on Netanyahu and Lieberman's watch. It will be inscribed forever in the name of Netanyahu and Lieberman," a senior Israeli official said Wednesday, a day before the UN General Assembly is expected to vote on a Palestinian bid for recognition as a non-member observer state.

The entire political establishment agrees that the Palestinian bid, which is expected to pass, constitutes a major defeat for Israel. "(Prime Minister Benjamin) Netanyahu and (Foreign Minister Avigdor) Lieberman boasted in the UN last year that the 'moral majority' of Western states are cooperating with Israel. Now it turns out that the Palestinians not only have an automatic majority, they also have the support of Western countries Israel could not recruit in its favor," one official said.

I am not exactly sure just what to make of all this, yet, but I do not know that it really reflects much on either Netanyahu or Lieberman.  The fact of the matter is that the Palestinians have an automatic majority in the General Assembly and, therefore, could do this no matter the Israeli leadership.

The implication seems to be that if only Lieberman or Netanyahu were somehow nicer to Mahmoud Abbas then this would not be happening, but that's always the way of things in western minds around the Arab-Israel conflict.   No matter what happens, it's Israel's fault.

The real question, tho, is what are the consequences for this move?  The UN will recognize "Palestine" as a "non-member state"?  So, it will be a state without borders, but with the ability to bring suit against Israel before the United Nations.  But if it is a state, then it will also have responsibilities and can more easily be held to account for failure to live up to those responsibilities.  Responsibilities such as, for example, seeing to it that factions under Palestinian sovereignty do not shoot rockets into Israel.

There is also the huge question around the split between Hamas and Fatah.  If the UN grants "Palestine" status as a state, does that include the Gaza strip?  It would have to, no?  Will this force a reconciliation between the two terrorist groups or will they go to war with one another?  I'm guessing the former.  In either case, let the defenestrations begin!

Also, this would seem to kill off the Israeli right's desire for Greater Israel.  I mean, how can Israel possibly annex Judea and Samaria if large swaths of those areas constitute "Palestine"?

Perhaps Israel should look at this as an opportunity to move beyond the status quo.  What I think that Israel should probably do... and I say this with considerable tentativeness, because there's an awful lot of moving parts here... is take this as an opportunity to declare its own final borders.  If the Palestinians do not wish to negotiate final borders then let Israel, after "Palestine" is recognized as a "non-member state," declare its own final borders and be the first country to welcome the newly formed state of Palestine into the community of nations.

Of course this should mean that they get none of Jerusalem and can use beautiful downtown Ramallah for the headquarters of whatever vicious criminal-terrorist government that they sling together.

{Good-bye.  And good luck with that, fellahs.}