When, the peace?

How much further must the Palestinians go before they can have their own independent state in the West Bank with East Jerusalem as its capital?

In a recent interview with The New York Times, Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas showed the extent to which he is willing to accommodate Israel. He said he would accept continued Israeli military presence in the projected Palestinian state for five years, and US-led NATO forces to be deployed in the West Bank indefinitely.

Abbas made it clear that the probable Palestinian state will be demilitarised for all times.

This far-reaching Palestinian concession to allay Israel’s feel for its security is, one would believe, the uppermost limit any Palestinian leader can touch to make peace with Israel.

No independent state on this planet would accept to have on its soil foreign troops indefinitely in order to make its neighbours feel safe and secure.

Nonetheless, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu wants more.

He insists on making the recognition of Israel as a “Jewish state” a precondition for arriving at peace with the Palestinians, despite the fact that this may be a non-issue after all. As said, Israelis can call their country anything they want as long as Palestinians have their own state.

Netanyahu’s insistence on having Israel recognised as a “Jewish state” is just pushing the Palestinians against the wall over an issue Israelis fabricated for tactical reasons.

Israeli Labour member of Knesset Omer Bar-Lev, sensing that Netanyahu is playing for time, called on him to stop zigzagging for a change and respond favourably to Abbas’ generous offer for peace.

Netanyahu should end his antics since he can no longer fool anybody, including his own people.