Give the Palestinian leadership credit for consistency. It never departs from its goal not only of delegitimizing Israeli but also probably of eliminating the Zionist entity. The PLO, Hamas and other organizations pursue peace to promote destruction. The drive to a United Nations declaration of Palestinian statehood rates as the latest chapter in a story that dates to Israel's rebirth.
Israel supports a so-called two-state formula. So does the United States. The Times-Dispatch agrees. We also lament Israel's delay in embracing a two-state option and its sometime reluctance to hasten the bid. Nevertheless, Israel's enemies bear the blame for the absence of an agreement. They rejected two states in 1948. After the 1967 Six-Day War, the Arab League adopted a resolution that said no peace with Israel, no recognition of Israel and no negotiations with Israel. Although the "three nos" no longer describe policy toward Israel, the hatred they express continues to poison relations throughout the region.
Last year the editor of the Editorial Pages joined the bishop of the Episcopal Diocese of Virginia on a pilgrimage and fact-finding mission to Israel and Palestine. The small group heard an Israeli opposition politician urge swift U.S. recognition of a Palestinian declaration of statehood. Debate within Israel remains robust. The speaker's position does not seem to reflect the Israeli street, which repeatedly has seen the promise of peace betrayed.
Statehood and full participation in the U.N. would benefit the Palestinians in mischievous ways. It would allow them to pursue grievances against Israel in international courts and other bodies not known as friendly toward Israel or even neutral regarding the Middle East. For instance, should the right of return be subject to international adjudication? Although the lines defining Israel and a Palestinian state should be open to discussion and to movement, the return of refugees and their descendants to land inside Israel proper would destroy Israel itself. Palestinian suffering, at the hands of other Arabs as well as at the hands of Israel, cannot be denied. Sowing the seeds of Israel's end is not the answer.
The diplomacy leading to a possible U.N. debate has been fast and furious. The specifics may have changed overnight, yet the fundamentals seldom vary. Too many simply refuse to accommodate Israel's existence. Genuine reconciliation remains a distant dream.
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