Obama On Israel, Part I

Recently, President Obama gave an interview to Channel 2 TV of Israel. Here is some of what he had to say; followed, of course, with my comments.

Obama: "And I think Prime Minister Netanyahu is somebody who's predisposed to think of security first; to think perhaps that peace is naive; to see the worst possibilities as opposed to the best possibilities in Arab partners or Palestinian partners."

Why would an Israeli P.M. think of security first? Maybe because the Middle East is aflame in turmoil and violence. Maybe because the Palestinians are sworn to Israel's destruction; and even now Abbas says he will never recognize Israel as the Jewish state. And maybe because you, Mr. Obama, seem intent on letting the Iranian Ayatollahs get a bomb - and fulfill their desire to wipe Israel off the map. And how, Mr. Obama, do you account for the fact that it has been reported that Israel is in secret negotiations with Saudi Arabia, if Netanyahu is unable to see all the possibilities?

Obama: "Already the international community does not believe that Israel is serious about a two-state solution." You mean the international anti-Semitic community? The 57 Muslim countries who will always be openly against Israel? The Western Europeans who never learn anything from history? Or maybe the UN, whose Human Rights Council has a standing subject - Israel - on their agenda. Not Iran or Saudi Arabia or China or North Korea or Cuba or Russia. No, Israel is the biggest problem at the UN - you know, the "international community" that you are so concerned about Mr. Obama.

Obama: "Well, when I said after the election that we would have to evaluate our policy, and I was referring to something very specific, and that is how we approach defending Israel on the international stage around the Palestinian issue." The truth comes out Mr. Obama. This writer suspected from day one that notwithstanding whatever military assistance was provided to Israel, you would ultimately sell Israel out at the UN. I said you would allow the imposition of a Palestinian state on the the so-called 1967 borders, which are nothing more than the 1949 armistice lines following the Arabs first attempt to wipe Israel off the map. Those borders are indefensible, being less than 9 miles wide at one point.

Under President Johnson, and following the 1967 war, the Joint Chiefs here were directed to prepare a map that would outline all the land Israel would need to keep - forever - in order to protect itself from further attacks. That map showed Israel keeping much of the West Bank (Judea and Samaria), as well as Gaza, the Golan Heights and other areas. (As reported by Carolyn Glick in her book "The Israeli Solution," 2014 by Crown Forum Publishing.) After the 1973 Yom Kippur war, Israel did return the Sinai to Egypt. Under Ariel Sharon Israel gave up the Gaza strip - only to suffer constant rocket attacks ever since from Hamas and other terrorist groups in Gaza.