“Peaceful” plan by Ariel Sharon: fences, ditches, and check-points

Israeli prime-minister Ariel Sharon has presented a new plan of peaceful settlement of Israeli-Palestinian conflict. According to him, that is “a serious plan, probably, the most serious of all proposed” to reach peace in the Middle East. Though, its details are not known. According to Israeli mass media, the Sharon plan will be discussed Sunday, at the sitting of the ministers. Afterwards, it will be presented to the US President, George Bush. However, some details of the plan are known. And after learning them, one at once understands why Sharon is so optimistic about it. The main idea of the new plan is creation of a “buffer zone” around the whole Israeli border. Therefore, terrorists will not be able to penetrate to Israeli territory. The “buffer zone” must be fastened with a fence, a ditch and check-points on that places where transport enters the territory. In other words, Israeli authorities want to realize an old idea: to isolate themselves from Arabs: let them settle all their issues on themselves. If so, any peaceful settlement is out of the question. The terrorist acts will probably stop, though only for some time. There is no fence in the world, where one could not find a loophole. Sooner or later, the terrorists will find some ways to penetrate to Israeli territory. The Sharon plan was born rather by his unbelief that the conflict could be settled in a peaceful way. Although, Yasser Arafat now can leave his residence in Ramallah, it does not mean that Israeli-Palestinian relations will change to the better. In the meanwhile, despite all reports that there was no massacre in the refugee camp near Jenin, Palestinians insist on necessity to investigate the reasons of the tragedy. Palestinian constant observer to the UN, Naser al-Kidva called the world community to blaming Israel for its refuse to cooperate with UN mission for establishing facts of massacre in the Jenin refugee camp. While appearing on Friday, at the sitting of UN Security Council on the Palestinian issue, he noticed that the Palestinian leadership “resolutely blames Israel’s decision to hinder from the work of the mission.” At the same time, the diplomat stressed that the world community must for sure carry out an investigation of the events in Jenin, where “Israeli military committed cruel crimes towards peaceful Palestinians.” In conclusion he said that he still intended to obtain passing by the Security Council a resolution demanding from Israel to cooperate with the UN mission for establishing facts of the crime committed in Jenin. “If the Council turns out to be incapable to approve this resolution, we will be forced to present this question to consideration of a special session of UN Assembly General,” – Naser al-Kidva added. The Palestinian leadership still insists on the events in Jenin being the object of the most careful international investigation. And although Israelis insist on no massacre having took place, the fact that the UN delegation was not admitted to Jenin testifies against Israelis. At least, if Palestinians lie, this would became known very soon. However that may by, but May 7, Ariel Sharon must meet with the US President. At the meeting, the prime-minister will present his plan. Though, there were already so many plans of the kind, while the situation still has not been settled.

Oleg Artyukov PRAVDA.Ru

Translated by Vera Solovieva

Read the original in Russian: http://www.pravda.ru/main/2002/05/04/40636.html