Security, Peace and Realities in the Middle East (2)

In general, however, the war weakened the Arab armies, Arab states and Palestinian guerrillas did not give up the struggle against Israel. UN efforts to bring true peace went nowhere. On the one hand, Israel did not want to return all the Arab territories, and on the other hand, the Arabs did not accept Israel's existence. This situation was exacerbated by the war in October 1973 and the Arabs (of Egypt and Syria) by a surprising attack planned to recapture the occupied territories, and although at the beginning of the war, they achieved some successes, Israel could eventually drove Arab forces back to their previous positions and even new sections were also seized. October war was the last wide war between Arabs and Israel, and its most important consequence was providing suitable fields for starting the process of peace narrations, because on the one hand, Arabic countries had realized that due to America’s support for Israel and presence on division in Arabs lines, militarily defeating Israel would be impossible, and on the other hand, America asked for establishing peace between Arabs and Israel due to being defeated in Vietnam war and having economic benefits in Arabic countries.
In addition, after the war, the Israeli government also found that his undefeatable and seemingly invincible myth was not reality and needs to make peace with his Arab neighbors for his survival.
Israeli state in the 1982 began a widespread invasion to southern Lebanon and even advanced to Beirut. There have been mentioned two major reasons for the attack:
First, Israel wanted to crush the Palestine Liberation Organization forces to destroy any Palestinian identity and existence. Second, in direction of his expansionist strategy, expand his borders to the Litani River in southern Lebanon.
Now, after several years of Israeli incursion into southern Lebanon, varied opinions have emerged about the withdrawal of the Israeli army from it or staying it. Military of Zionism regime prefer to have south of Lebanon in their hands, and it is also considered as a security region for stopping entrance and influence of Palestinian fighters and Hezbollah of Lebanon to northern Israeli regions. Some others believe that exiting Lebanon allows Israel state to reduce the public opinion’s pressure and put Syria’s state in impasse Golan Heights which is still in Israel’s control. It seems that the Israeli government due to heavy costs and damages (physical and financial) that has incurred and also putting pressure on Syria wants to exit in a honorable way but there are still two anxieties for Israel state including providing the security of Jewish settlements bordering with southern Lebanon and also Phalanges and Israel’s fans in Lebanon that might be in serious danger after exit of Israel forces. Netanyahu recently announced that he is prepared to evacuate southern Lebanon under the condition that the Lebanese government gives necessary guarantees in exchange for providing security of southern Lebanon. However, Lebanon's government due to Syria's influence over it has refused to accept these demands. Southern Lebanon is now a wining card in the hands of the Syrian to force the Israeli government to give back the Golan Heights.
In recent years, especially since the rise of Netanyahu, Israel's expansion seeking has been manifested by creation of new settlements with expansion of Jewish settlements. Creation of Jewish settlements in Golan Heights is still continuing despite peace narrations of Middle East, and now, more than 40 Jewish settlements with 15 thousand Jewish inhabitants in this region have been built, and by the raise of Netanyahu these actions and settlement building policies have been increased.
The main objective of the Government of Israel is building settlements in the Golan, changing demographic and the geography structure of this area to their advantage. In addition, Israeli government officials are trying to fix their position in the region and win more points during the peace talks with Syrian officials.
Expansionist policy of the Israeli government in building new settlements in Jerusalem continues. The State of Israel has declared Jerusalem as their eternal capital and has scheduled for full control over the city. Judaization of the city is considered as one of the priorities of Israeli government, and all parties in this country confirmed it. In fact, recent stops in the Middle East’s peace process was followed by Abughanym or "Harhuma" plan which was programmed by the Netanyahu government for the Judaization of Jerusalem and met with strong protests from Palestinians and led to bloody clashes.
Building settlements in the Gaza Strip and the West Bank of the Jordan River also continues despite the agreement of the PLO and Israel in September 1993. In particular, Netanyahu's right-side government has been decisive in settlement policy, and it seems the process of establishing settlements will continue despite strong opposition at home and abroad.
3. Middle East peace: inner cause of Israel’s peace seeking
Due to the nature of the expansion of the Israeli government, participation of this country in the Middle East peace process should be viewed with skepticism. Of course, the causes and reasons in international, regional and domestic level have forced Israel government to participate in the negotiations, which began after the Madrid peace talks in 1991. In this section we will solely discuss internal causes of the Israeli government in the peace process. The main purpose is to show that Israel government is not looking for real peace and has been prepared to accept the peace just due to presence realities and necessities, and events of these recent years especially after the raise of Netanyahu prove this issue.
It seems intifada of the Palestinian people, the Israeli domestic economic problems and gaps within Israeli society are the main reasons that have led to the Israeli government to participate in the peace process.
3-1-Intifada of the Palestinian people
Intifada of Palestinian people or their rebellion against Israel state which begin from 1987 inside occupied territories was a domestic and Islamic movement that in the end led to put Palestinian in attack position and Israel state in defeat position after 40 years.
Israel's internal security is severely compromised, and this issue raised the necessity of solving the Palestinian issue for the Israeli government. Intifada led to the following developments be carried out in relations between Israel and the Palestinian people:
Firstly, Intifada brought the field of fighting with Israeli occupying government into the occupied territories after years once again, and it became clear that the fate of the Palestinians must be determined inside.
Secondly, Intifada led to Palestine to be in a position, which not only have the status of conquered side, but it could impose specific conditions to Israel state in many circumstances.
Thirdly, Intifada led to Palestinian groups outside Israel, like the PLO that were stuck in deadlock, obtain new credit. In other words, in this way the Israeli government was on the defensive status by and was forced to grant concessions to Palestine Liberation Organization. In fact, one of the reasons for the early development of the peace process between the PLO and Israel in the Middle East and the signing of the initial agreement was the risks of Intifada and spread of the Palestinian uprising inside Israel.
Intifada brought heavy losses for Israel and forced it to find a solution to it. Peace between Israel and the PLO could limit the size of the Intifada, and this was good for Israel.
Major losses that Israel has been realized due to the intifada are primarily related to the loss of life. Since the start of the intifada in the occupied territories about 15 Israeli soldiers were killed and 1,500 were injured. Although this figure is small against the Palestinian’s death figure, it had significant effect on the Israeli government's decision to participate in the peace process.
Other major damage which has been overwhelming to Israel was financial losses and high cost of dealing with the Intifada due to deteriorating economic situation in the country. According to "Dan Meridor", Israel's resigned finance minister, direct losses that Israel has suffered because of intifada reaches to the figure $ 758 million. Indirect losses have also been more than this figured that we can mention a few of them such as: Palestinian boycott, calling for army reservists or losing the opportunities. Heaviest losses which Israel has suffered was in the construction sector and agriculture. Due to insecurity, income from tourism has sharply fallen, and its total damage is estimated between 200 and 500 million dollars.
3 -2- Israel's internal economic problems
Israel's fragile economic situation in recent years, especially the problem of unemployment, not only threatens the political stability of the State of Israel, but also has impaired one of the bases of the security which is migration to the country. A precise examination of the economic difficulties in the Israeli government is not in the scope of this article, but any way, by study of the economy of this country it can be understood that the main problem of the Israeli economy in recent years has been unemployment. The unemployment rate in Israel in 1964 has been the rate of 3.3 percent which this rate is related to the period of rapid economic growth in the country (1954-1972). But with the beginning of the post-war recession in October 1973 war, unemployment was increasing, and in 1976, it reached to the figure of 13%. In the 1980s, despite the beginning of economic reforms, unemployment has not been reduced so much. The rate in 1983, 1987, 1988 and 1989 has been 5/4, /1/6, 9/8 percent. Israel's unemployment began to grow with the start of large-scale waves of Russian Jewish immigration to Israel in 1990 and cannot be compared with the past. The unemployment rate in the years 1990, 1991 and 1995 has been 6/10, 8/11, 7/6 percent. In 1996 and 1997, Israel's Central Bureau of Statistics reports that unemployment rate has been 7.6% and 7.7%, and currently it has been about 9 to 10 percent. The unemployment rate is higher among immigrants to Israel. According to the 1995’s statistic, unemployment rate among immigrants who have come to Israel since 1990 has been 1/19 percent, in 1993, 6/13 percent, and in 1994, 6.9 percent.
One of the major effects of poor economic conditions in Israel has been reverse migration from the country. Much of Israel’s unemployed in recent years have been made of new immigrants, so that, for example, in 1992 more than 5.1% of the total unemployed, about 42 thousands of newly arrived immigrants were unemployed people. Israel's recent years’ economic problems, especially the problem of unemployment in has caused the indigenous Jews or immigrants to think of leaving the country. In a survey in 1984, it became clear that 9.11% of the Jews for work abroad, 5.9 percent due to a lack of suitable jobs in Israel and 3.25 percent due to the difficult economic situation left Israel and emigrated abroad.
Since the immigration of Jews to Israel is of the main factors of continuity and survival of the state of Israel, reverse migration of Jews from Israel can be a devastating blow to its body. Jews’ immigration to Israel than Zionism movement is like a spirit for a flesh, and therefore, the reverse immigration is like the exit of spirit from the flesh, and this means that this movement will lose the most important social fact which they could rely on and apparently prove their historic existence.
Of course, peace with the Arabs can reduce the economic pressure of the Israeli government and not only can reduce its military and defense costs, but also can provide a background for spread and influence of Israeli economy in the region. The process of making economic relations with Arabic countries which is fulfilled by signature of peace agreement, represented bright horizons for the state of Israel so that it can speedup economic expansion in the country and solve internal economic problems such as unemployment.
3.3 present gap within Israeli society
Although the state of Israel was formed in 1948 and in the following years began to consolidate the foundations of its own, this country is still facing a major crisis called Nation-Building. Israel is a country where state-building has been a priority over nation-building. In fact fulfillment of the dreams and aspirations of Zionism not only depends on withdrawal of the Arab population of this country, but it also requires migration of Jews all over the world to the State of Israel. Now Israel's Jewish population have emigrated nearly from 102 different countries to Israel and each has cultural-language backgrounds of their own. Israel must act like a melting-pot to turn Jews, whose only joint point was their religion, into a new society. In total there are three types of gaps in Israel now:
First, the gap between Palestinian and Arabs residing in Israel and Jews that the Israeli government has no choice but to solve this problem, and maybe one of the causes of Israel's participation in the peace process was to solve the case.
Second, the gap between Western descent Jews (Ashkenazi) who have come from Europe and America and Eastern Jews (Sephardic) who have come from Asian and African countries, especially Arab countries.
Third, the gap between religions and non-religions, believers and the non–believers which is very deep gap that has recently happened again.
The only unifying factor among Jews is indeed being Jewish, and indeed only, factor of religion and faith has played the role of undermining of gaps and social tensions. It seems like that now, religious differences and the advent of extremist religious people have led not only to destroying of social gaps, but have led to their strengthening, and Israel’s society has been in a crisis status.
The difference between religious and non-religious is not about the common identity, but is in relation to the determinants of this identity. For example, between these two groups there is a major difference of opinion over the role of religion in Israel, the point that whether the Israeli government should be based on Jewish law or not, and that who is really a Jew?
These differences besides formation of tension in Israeli society and even street clashes, has also been effective in the assassination of Yitzhak Rabin. Undoubtedly, the assassination of Israeli prime minister - by Igal Amir - which was due to strong religious beliefs, considered Rabin for his peace seeking as a traitor.
Contradictions, tensions and old and new social gaps and the idea of creating a nation in Israel of immigrant groups affiliated to different races and cultures, reflects superstition of thinking further. These conflicts especially gap between religious and non-religious reflect that Israel’s society has differed from its past decades, and state of Israel has not been so successful in nation-building. It is obvious that making peace in the region could free the force of the Israeli government for the crisis of nation-building.
4. Is peace in the Middle East possible?
The main question that now exists in many minds is whether peace will be achieved in the Middle east or not? In the first part of this article we discussed the history of Zionism and its expansion feature. In the second part of the article, some internal causes were investigated which led to the Israeli government to bring peace. Due to these discussions, it can be argued that the Israeli government does not actually care about peace genuine in the region. When in September 1993 the Oslo Accords was signed, many observers with optimism assumed that differences between Israel and the Arabs are over. Israel has achieved his goal - Security - and the Palestine Liberation Organization on behalf of all the Palestinians has been successful to create a new government.
Various factors have been involved about why Arabs and especially Palestinians were ready to sit on negotiating table with Israel after half a century of struggle and effort. One of these factors was the collapse of the USSR and following the United States. In addition to the impact that the Soviet collapse had on making the Palestinians close to Israel, the US and Iraq war (in the Persian Gulf crisis) caused Palestinians particularly PLO suffer material damage. Yasser Arafat's support of Saddam Hussein led to Arabs’ pessimism toward Palestinian, and financial donations of oil states of the Persian Gulf, especially Kuwait and Saudi Arabia to the Palestine Liberation Organization were cut.
The Israeli government took advantage of this opportunity, and it signed the peace agreement due to material-mental weakness of PLO and its internal problems; Isaac Rabin, the Labor leader, believed that we should negotiate with the PLO. Of course, it should not be forgotten that both parties give a great importance to Israel’s security and do not have difference in general policies, but those difference that can be seen in their ways is mostly related to conditions and circumstances than difference in their identities. In other words, both parties have the same nature and purpose, and changing the conditions prompted one of the parties to sometimes have violent and warmonger nature. In fact, in addition to other factors, three internal factors which were described earlier have been effective in the Israeli government's decision to sign a peace agreement with the PLO.
With the raise of government of Netanyahu and Likud's victory, again we observe the tough face of Israeli state. Netanyahu's view is that the Labour Party’s peace is nothing but a mirage and cannot serve Israel's security, but Israel to guarantee his security first of all has to rely on his deterrent power. This deterrence is the thing which can make peace with Israel's neighbors not the formula of "land for peace". Netanyahu believes that losing ground will jeopardize Israel's security.
Israeli governments (both Labor and Likud) insists on non-return to pre-1967 borders, Jerusalem unity and maintaining the Zionist enterprise and is not ready to accept at least demands of the Palestinians and Arab countries which is dismantling the Zionist settlements of the West Bank and the Gaza Strip, withdrawal from East Jerusalem, and the creation of an independent Palestinian state in the West Bank and Gaza strip by capital of Jerusalem. None of the Labor Party and Likud party are not prepared on the dismantling of Jewish settlements, and if there is a problem, it relates to the building of new settlements or the expansion of cities not to removal of them. Both parties are strongly opposed to the establishment of an independent Palestinian state in the West Bank and Gaza Strip by having authority and consider it dangerous for Israel's security. While both parties have consistently emphasized that Jerusalem cannot be divided again, and this city will remain the capital of Israel forever.
Now the Netanyahu government faces two major problems. One is whether to give a positive or negative response to peace and other is economic problems including the problem of poverty and unemployment. Netanyahu does not believe in granting concessions to the Palestinians and Arabs, and perhaps this belief is influenced by the beliefs of religious extremists who support him. Since Netanyahu has won the support of religious extremists, he cannot keep away from the atmosphere of this class. Thus, Netanyahu since his first tenure as prime in the last two years tried to make the Palestinians and the Arabs understand to forget concession and to adapt themselves to new conditions. The controversy related to the reopening of the tunnel under Western Wall of Al-Aqsa Mosque and to refrain from closing it despite numerous demonstrations and protests was mostly for making this new concept stable. The beginning of the settlement building in Jabal Abughanim located in the southern part of East Jerusalem is also in the same category. Basically, Netanyahu believes that there should be no concessions to the Arabs, and all that Rabin and Peres wanted to obtain through the formula of "peace for the land" could be achieved without giving any concessions to the Arabs, because they are not able to do any important work. Netanyahu apparently has managed to convince the Americans regarding the correctness of this view. Especially as Yasser Arafat is a shattered and tired person who is fully prepared to accept any outcome against Israel. Therefore, it is clear that real peace in Middle East does not seem real according to the presence facts, and this is Israel that wants to fulfill his old and strategic demands by new methods.
5. Conclusion
Considering the point that presence of Israeli state in peace talks is a function of that state’s definition about the security, any participation from Israel in the processes related to solving the Palestine’s crisis is strongly influenced by the procedure of this regime to security.
Therefore, Israeli targets of having discussion of peace are as following:
(A) Obtaining legitimacy in the region
(B) The consolidation of the presence status and covering up to 50 years for rape and murder
(C) Preparations for subsequent expansion
(D) To make division in the opposite front
(E) Creating opportunity to control Intifada and repression of Islamic resistance
(G) To solve domestic problems
Presence fact that has been expressed in the frame of stop and dead end of acceptance process, and all active players have failed in trying for coming out of that crisis all depict lack of attention to real and basic contrasts and conflicts in solving this international crisis.
Being unfair, being unrealistic, being unsustainable and non-compliance with international law and ignoring the most obvious rights of a nation, has turned peace fulfillment into an illusion. So it seems:
1- Prerequisite for entering into any negotiations or attempts to solve the Palestinian crisis is not possible without addressing the mentioned fundamental contradictions.
2. Any anti-Zionism without fighting against Israel is fundamentally a flawed and ineffective campaign. Therefore, to organize serious international fight against Zionism it is needed to fight with Israel, which is to fight against Israeli expansionism.
3. In order to deal with the expansion seeking of Israel such as: the proliferation of nuclear weapons and prevent of the regime of international inspections of its institutions, fueling the arms race in the region with US’ support, using state terrorism in order to create insecurity in the region, violation of rights of the Palestinians by expanding settlements, the following measures are essential:
(A) Continuous disclosure of Israeli practices
(B) Action of Actives of international organizations and non-governmental organizations
(C) Permanently keeping the Palestinian issue alive by organizing programs and seminars.
(4) The General Assembly of the United Nations should officially recognize an independent Palestinian state with an inclusive government that its condition for fulfillment is the return of all Palestinian refugees to Palestine.
(5) A committee should be formed under the supervision of Europe Union, the Organization of the Islamic Conference, the UN General Assembly and representatives of the Palestinian people to achieve the above paragraph to provide the possibility of return of Palestinian refugees to their homeland.