Tip:
Highlight text to annotate it
X
what will they tell the world next week
at the UN? 0:00:10.039,0:00:13.529What could we say? 0:00:13.529,0:00:17.319Whether in the General Assembly or the Security Council we will be exposed in all our nakedness
Israel does not want a Palestinian state
And it doesn't have a single persuasive argument against the establishment 0:00:26.909,0:00:31.759and the international recognition of such a state
So what will we say, that we're opposed?
Four prime ministers, Benjamin Netanyahu among them
have said
that they're in favor, that it must be accomplished through negotiations
so why haven't we done it yet? 0:00:48.060,0:00:52.440Is our argument that we object to it's being a unilateral measure?0:00:52.440,0:00:58.110What's more unilateral than the settlements that we insist on continuing to build?0:00:58.110,0:01:01.479 Or perhaps we will say that the route to a Palestinian state runs through
Ramallah and Jerusalem0:01:03.190,0:01:04.530not New York 0:01:04.530,0:01:06.550a la the U.S. secretary of state 0:01:06.550,0:01:12.820The State of Israel itself was created, in part, in the United Nations 0:01:12.820,0:01:16.070Next week will be Israel's moment of truth 0:01:16.070,0:01:21.220or more precisely the moment in which its deception will be revealed
Be it the president 0:01:22.690,0:01:25.890the prime minister or the ambassador to the UN 0:01:25.890,0:01:27.530even the greatest of public speakers will be
incapable of standing before the 0:01:30.520,0:01:36.740representatives of the nations of the world and explaining Israeli logic
none of the three will be able to convince them that there is any merit to
Israel's position
Thirty-two years ago
Israel signed a peace agreement with Egypt in which it undertook
"to recognize the legitimate rights of the Palestinian people" and to 0:01:54.790,0:01:59.090establish an autonomous authority in the West Bank and Gaza Strip
within five years. Nothing happened0:02:05.480,0:02:06.600 Eighteen years ago 0:02:06.600,0:02:10.459the prime minister of Israel signed the Oslo Accords
in which Israel undertook to conduct talks in order to achieve a final-status0:02:14.790,0:02:16.090 agreement 0:02:16.090,0:02:18.309with the Palestinians
including the core issues, within five years0:02:21.649,0:02:24.479 That, too, did not occur 0:02:24.479,0:02:28.289Most of the provisions of the agreement have foundered since then
in the majority of cases because of Israel 0:02:32.529,0:02:37.469 What will Israel's advocate at the UN say about this? 0:02:37.469,0:02:39.270For years, Israel claimed that
Yasser Arafat was the sole obstacle to peace with 0:02:42.549,0:02:47.379 the Palestinians0:02:47.379,0:02:49.879Arafat died and once again nothing happened0:02:49.879,0:02:53.479Israel claimed that if only the terror were to stop0:02:53.479,0:02:56.069 a solution would appear
The terror stopped - and nothing
Israel's excuses became increasingly empty0:03:04.969,0:03:06.469 and the naked truth was increasingly 0:03:06.469,0:03:08.439exposed 0:03:08.439,0:03:12.609Israel does not want to reach a peace arrangement that would
involve the
establishment of 0:03:14.609,0:03:17.369 a Palestinian state0:03:17.369,0:03:20.389 This can no longer be covered up in the UN
And what did Netanyahu's Israel expect the Palestinians to do in this case
another round of photo ops
like the ones with Ehud Barak, Ehud Olmert and Tzipi Livni that led nowhere?
The truth is that the Palestinians have just three options
not four 0:03:46.529,0:03:48.149 1 to surrender
unconditionally and go on living under Israeli occupation for another 42 years at least 0:03:55.319,0:04:00.519 2 to launch a third intifada
or to mobilize the world
on their behalf
They picked the third option, the lesser of all evils
even from Israel's perspective
What could Israel say about this
that it's a unilateral steps
as it and the United States have said?0:04:20.449,0:04:24.289 But it didn't agree to stop construction in the settlements0:04:24.289,0:04:27.330 the mother of all unilateral steps
What did the Palestinians have left?
The international arena
And if that won't save them
then another popular uprising
in the territories 0:04:39.059,0:04:41.660The Palestinians in the West Bank 0:04:41.660,0:04:43.5003.5 million today
will not live without civil rights for another 0:04:47.620,0:04:50.07042 years
We might as well get used to the fact that the
world won't stand for it
Can Netanyahu or Shimon Peres explain 0:04:59.569,0:05:04.179why the Palestinians do not deserve their own state? 0:05:04.179,0:05:09.110Do they have even the slightest of arguments? Nothing 0:05:09.110,0:05:11.469And why not now? 0:05:11.469,0:05:13.060We have already seen
especially of late, that time only reduces the possible alternatives
in the region
So even that weak excuse is dead Yesterday, a coalition of Israeli peace organizations
published a list of
50 reasons for Israel
to support a Palestinian state
Assuming that you only accept five of them
isn't that enough?
What exactly is the alternative
Can anyone, can Peres
or Netanyahu 0:05:50.419,0:05:52.309seriously contend that
the regional hostility toward us
would not have lessened
had the occupation already ended and a Palestinian state been established?
The truths are so basic, so banal, that it hurts even to repeat them
But, unfortunately
they're the only ones we have. And so
a simple question to whoever 0:06:15.690,0:06:18.710will be representing us at the UN next week 0:06:18.710,0:06:21.840Why not, for heaven's sake?
Why "no" once again? 0:06:23.929,0:06:25.180And to what will 0:06:25.180,0:06:25.970we say "yes" to?