Doc's Talk: On Negotiations from Strength

Sunday, July 21, 2013

On Negotiations from Strength

David M. Weinberg On July 21, 2013

The new Israeli-Palestinian negotiations should not begin from any 65 year old armistice line forced upon us by Arab aggression; nor “from the point that talks last left off” five years ago under a previous, defeatist Israeli government; nor from the defensive “security fence” forced upon us by Palestinian terrorism; nor from any borders high-handedly dictated by the international community. Israel’s baseline position at the outset of the talks should be that 100 percent of the West Bank belongs to Israel. Only then can it hope to obtain a sensible compromise.

Published in Israel Hayom ^[2], July 21, 2013.
As Israel enters a new round of diplomatic negotiations with the Palestinians over the future of Judea and Samaria (the West Bank), it is critical that Israel assert its full rights to the entire Land of Israel; to all of Judea and Samaria. We have religious, historical and legal rights to the entire territory, in addition to holding physical possession (“chazaka” in Talmudic lingo) of the disputed territories for good reasons.
After all, the Palestinian Authority begins these negotiations claiming 100 percent of the West Bank, based on the so-called 1967 lines (which really are no more than the 1949 armistice lines). And it seems that the United States bases the talks on the 1967 lines too. Yet Israel’s claim to the full territory in dispute is no less valid, substantive and sustainable. It is richly buttressed by political experience and security necessity.
This should be our starting point: We rightfully claim 100 percent of the territories. The negotiations should not begin from any 65 year old armistice line forced upon us by Arab aggression; nor “from the point that talks last left off” five years ago under a previous, defeatist Israeli government; nor from the defensive “security fence” forced upon us by Palestinian terrorism; nor from any borders high-handedly dictated by the international community.
The talks should begin from the beginning. The beginning is that the land in dispute is all ours.

Every Israeli ought to understand this simple principle: If you begin a negotiation with inferior or reduced claims, the other side has the upper legal hand and a moral edge and will win the day.
Talmudic sages of two thousand years ago knew this well. The tractate of Bava Metzia opens with a detailed legal discussion of monetary dispute where two disputants are grabbing hold of a garment (a “tallit” or prayer shawl) and claiming ownership. If they each claims total and exclusive rights to the talit (“kula sheli”; it is all mine), and neither side can definitively refute the claim of the other, they end up in logical compromise: equally splitting the value of the object.
But if one side claims 100 percent ownership, while the other claims only a 50 percent ownership, the first disputant is awarded 75 percent of the total value of the object. The first claimant gets half of the value in dispute (equaling 25 percent) along with the base 50 percent that the second claimant admitted wasn’t his to begin with. The less-certain claimant is crushed by the certainty and absoluteness of the unyielding claimant.
Of course, different laws of possession generally apply to land which is lived upon and cultivated, and to which historic, geographic, demographic, political, security and strategic considerations also apply. But the dynamics of negotiation and the underlying forces of moral persuasion regnant in the dispute over that Talmudic tallit are still valid to our current situation.
If we are convinced of the justice and logic of our unqualified claim to Judea and Samaria and united Jerusalem; if the talks begin from “kula sheli”; and if we tenaciously lay out the logic of our baseline position – we stand a good chance of obtaining a sensible compromise result from the negotiation with the Palestinians.
But if we aren’t ourselves convinced of our absolute rights; if at the outset we don’t assert our total claims; if our starting point and negotiation demands aren’t as resolute as those of our adversary – we are likely to end up with a result to our severe detriment.
Prime Minister Netanyahu should take heed.
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MEMRI Special Dispatch|5370| July 21, 2013

In Friday Sermons, Egyptian Cleric Muhammad Al-Zughbi Calls On Allah To Annihilate Jews, Shi'ites

The following are excerpts from Friday sermons by Egyptian cleric Muhammad Al-Zughbi, that aired on Amjad TV on May 24 and 31, 2013.

Al-Zughbi studied at Al-Azhar and lived and worked in Kuwait for many years;[1] MEMRI TV has released other clips of him as well.[2]

Amjad TV, founded and financed by Islamist businessman Muhammad Saber, began broadcasting in January 2013.[3] Two weeks ago, it was shut down by the Egyptian military, together with all other Islamist channels in the country.

To view this clip on MEMRI TV, click here.

http://www.memritv.org/clip/en/3914.htm

May 24, 2013: "Oh Allah, Destroy The Accursed Jews... Disperse Them And Kill Them All, Turn Their Children Into Orphans And Their Wives Into Widows"

Muhammad Al-Zughbi: "Oh Allah, protect Egypt from the manipulators and the

corrupt. Protect it from the criminal traitors and the criminal rafidites

[Shi'tes]. Protect it from the accursed Jews. Protect it from the Crusaders

and from those who are ignorant of their religion. Oh Allah, protect Egypt

from all Your enemies. [...]

"Oh Allah, destroy the accursed Jews. Oh Allah, disperse them and kill them

all, turn their children into orphans and their wives into widows. Let them

serve as a warning. [...]

"Oh Allah, destroy the Arab rulers. Bring dark hours upon them, and

demonstrate the wonders of Your might upon them. Oh Allah, abandon them,

just as they abandoned Syria. Oh Allah, destroy them and put them to shame

for the whole world to see. [...]

"Oh Allah, destroy Bashar, destroy the Shi'te Iranians, destroy Hizbullah,

destroy that infidel, Hassan Nasrallah. Inflict cancer and pain upon him.

Bring Your might to bear upon him and upon the Shi'tes of Iraq. Bring dark

hours upon them, and demonstrate the wonders of Your might upon them. You

destroyed 'Aad and Thamud, Nimrod, and Pharaoh – annihilate the Shi'tes."

[...]

May 31, 2013: "Oh Allah, The Rafidite Shi'tes From Iran, From Hizbullah, And

From Iraq... Slaughtered [The Sunnis'] Sons, And Humiliated Their Women"

"Oh Allah, support the Sunnis in Syria, feed the hungry among them, quench

the thirst of the thirsty among them, cover the naked among them, strengthen

them, and guide their shooting. Oh Allah, support the Sunnis in Syria.

Everybody ganged up against them, and deceivers deceived them.

"Oh Allah, the rulers of the Arabs and the Muslims united against them. They

are hypocrites, along with the accursed U.S.A., for the benefit of Israel.

Oh Allah, the rafidite Shi'tes from Iran, from Hizbullah, and from Iraq came

to them, slaughtered their sons, and humiliated their women.

"Oh Allah, their children and infants are slaughtered with knives in front

of their fathers and their mothers. Have mercy upon the infants and the

children. Girls, women, and mothers were raped by the rafidite Shi'tes.

[...]

"Oh Allah, have mercy upon them! The rafidite Shi'tes slaughtered them in

their homes, in front of their families. Have mercy upon the children and

upon the girls who were raped. Have mercy upon the Sunnis. Have mercy! We

are pleading with you, in Your mosque, today. We do not plead with anyone

but You. We do not plead with presidents, ministers, kings, or princes. We

have given up on them. We beg you, have mercy! We do not plead with anyone

but You. We pray to You." [...]

[1]

https://www.facebook.com/pages/Sheikh-Muhammad-Alzoghby-%D8%A7%D9%84%D8%B4%D9%8A%D8%AE-%D9%85%D8%AD%D9%85%D8%AF-%D8%A8%D9%86-%D8%B9%D8%A8%D8%AF-%D8%A7%D9%84%D9%85%D9%84%D9%83-%D8%A7%D9%84%D8%B2%D8%BA%D8%A8%D9%8A/184159809092?id=184159809092&sk=info,

[2] See MEMRI TV Clip No. 2125 - Egyptian Cleric Muhammad Al-Zughbi Calls on

Mubarak to "Annihilate" Iranians and "Bahais in Our Country" Al-Rahma TV

(Egypt) - April 14, 2009; MEMRI TV Clip No. 2012 - Egyptian Cleric Muhammad

Al-Zughbi Draws Lessons from the Battles of Early Islam and Prays for the

Annihilation of the US and European Leaders, Al-Rahma TV (Egypt), January

12, 2009.

[3] http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZeReJRvSE8o.

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The IDF’s Minorities in Numbers and Pictures

In honor of IDF Diversity Week, we present diversity through numbers and pictures. Each year, more and more Muslims, Christians, Druze, Bedouin and immigrants from around the world take on the responsibility of defending Israel.

MUSLIMS:

Muslim Arab Israelis are not required to draft in the IDF, but there are many who volunteer. In 2013, there were over 200 Muslims serving in the IDF and over 300 in the reserves.

Bedouins:

Bedouins are nomadic Muslims who were in Israel when modern borders were set in place and are now considered Israeli citizens. They are not required to draft but a growing number choose to enlist. In 2012, there were over 1,400 Bedouin Muslim soldiers doing regular IDF service and almost 1,500 in the reserves.

Read more:http://www.idfblog.com/2014/02/27/truth-idf-numbers-pictures/#more-34027

Are you aware that in 2013, Middle class taxes go up-significantly?

In January of next year, the federal income tax rate for middle-class taxpayers is scheduled to rise from 25 percent to 28 percent, and the payroll tax is scheduled to rise from 13.3 percent to 15.3 percent… This drives the marginal tax rate based on the aforementioned three taxes to 48.12 percent. Add in state and local property, corporate, excise, and other state and local taxes, and the percentage of each additional dollar that is taxed hovers around 50 percent… When half of each additional dollar earned is taxed away, taxpayers experience a disincentive to start businesses or expand existing ones. This leads to fewer jobs being created.

Why is HAMAS Inside Tampa Schools?

Clare Lopez

Kelly Miliziano, who teaches history classes at Steinbrenner High School in the Tampa, Florida area apparently thinks it’s perfectly OK to invite a senior official of a HAMAS-affiliated organization into her classroom to discuss Islam with her students. According to local media reports, not only has this been going on for years, but in spite of the civil and criminal proceedings that could result from such reckless negligence, the Hillsborough County school superintendent, Mary Ellen Elia, and the chairman of the school board, Candy Olson, also expressed approval for students under their responsibility to be exposed repeatedly to guest speaker, Hassan Shibly, who is the Executive Director for the Council on American-Islamic Relations (CAIR) in the Tampa area.
More...

Did You Know... Ignoring the Call to Islam will Bring Jihad

‘Conquest through Da’wa [proselytizing] that is what we hope for. We will conquer Europe, we will conquer America! Not through sword but through Da’wa.’
-- Yousef al-Qaradawi , Muslim Brotherhood spiritual leader The Arabic word ‘Da’wa’ means the “call to Islam.” But do not think that Da’wa is the same thing as an invitation to an optional holiday event. The classical Islamic doctrine of jihad mandates that enemies must be given the opportunity to convert to Islam or pay the jizya tax before it is permissible to attack them.
Clare M. Lopez

Who is being discriminated-facts tell the truth

Religious bias

Hate crimes motivated by religious bias accounted for 1,409 offenses reported by law enforcement. A breakdown of the bias motivation of religious-bias offenses showed:

65.4 percent were anti-Jewish.
13.2 percent were anti-Islamic.
9.5 percent were anti-other religion, i.e., those not specified.
4.3 percent were anti-Catholic.
3.8 percent were anti-multiple religions, group.
3.3 percent were anti-Protestant.
0.5 percent were anti-Atheism/Agnosticism/etc.

http://www.fbi.gov/about-us/cjis/ucr/hate-crime/2010/narratives/hate-crime-2010-incidents-and-offenses.

On March 31, 1977, the Dutch newspaper Trouw published an interview

with PLO executive committee member Zahir Muhsein. Here's what he said:

"The Palestinian people does not exist. The creation of a Palestinian state is only a means for continuing our struggle against the state of Israel for our Arab unity. In reality today there is no difference between Jordanians, Palestinians, Syrians and Lebanese. Only for political and tactical reasons do we speak today about the existence of a Palestinian people, since Arab national interests demand that we posit the existence of a distinct "Palestinian people" to oppose Zionism.

For tactical reasons, Jordan, which is a sovereign state with defined borders, cannot raise claims to Haifa and Jaffa, while as a Palestinian, I can undoubtedly demand Haifa, Jaffa, Beer-Sheva and Jerusalem. However, the moment we reclaim our right to all of Palestine, we will not wait even a minute to unite Palestine and Jordan."

In March 1977, Zahir Muhsein, a PLO executive, said:

"The Palestinian people does not exist. The creation of a Palestinian state is only a means for continuing our struggle against the state of Israel for our Arab unity. In reality today there is no difference between Jordanians, Palestinians, Syrians and Lebanese. Only for political and tactical reasons do we speak today about the existence of a Palestinian people, since Arab national interests demand that we posit the existence of a distinct Palestinian people to oppose Zionism."

"For tactical reasons, Jordan, which is a sovereign state with defined borders, cannot raise claims to Haifa and Jaffa, while as a Palestinian, I can undoubtedly demand Haifa, Jaffa, Beer-Sheva and Jerusalem. However, the moment we reclaim our right to all of Palestine, we will not wait even a minute to unite Palestine and Jordan."

The Arab Apartheid

Ben-Dror Yemini
In 1948, the Arab countries refused to accept the UN partition proposal and they launched a war of annihilation against the State of Israel which had barely been established. All precedents in this matter showed that the party that starts the war - and with a declaration of annihilation, yet - pays a price for it. Between 550,000 and 710,000 Arabs fled because of the war and a larger number of 850,000 Jews were expelled or fled from Arab countries (the "Jewish nakba").
Population exchanges and expulsions were the norm at that time, occurring in dozens of other conflict points and affecting about 52 million people. In all the population exchange precedents that occurred during or at the end of an armed conflict, there was no return of refugees to the previous region, which had turned into a new national state.
Only the Arab states acted completely differently from the rest of the world. Instead of assimilating the refugees, they crushed them despite the fact that they were their coreligionists and members of the Arab nation - instituting a regime of apartheid. So the "nakba" was not caused by the actual dispossession, which had also been experienced by tens of millions of others. The "nakba" is the story of the apartheid, oppression, abuse and denial of rights suffered by the Arab refugees at the hands of the Arab countries. (Maariv)

International Law and Military Operations in Practice - Col. Richard Kemp

"Islamist fighting groups study the international laws of armed conflict carefully and they understand it well. They know that a British or Israeli commander and his men are bound by international law and the rules of engagement that flow from it. They then do their utmost to exploit what they view as one of their enemy's main weaknesses. Their very modus operandi is built on the correct assumption that Western armies will normally abide by the rules, while these insurgents employ a deliberate policy of operating consistently outside international law. "

Lost Historical Moments

What Rabin’s last Knesset speech really said:repudiation of a Palestinian state

Rabin ruled out a fully sovereign Palestinian state :

“We view the permanent solution in the framework of State of Israel which will include most of the area of the Land of Israel as it was under the rule of the British Mandate, and alongside it a Palestinian entity which will be a home to most of the Palestinian residents living in the Gaza Strip and the West Bank. We would like this to be an entity which is less than a state, and which will independently run the lives of the Palestinians under its authority.”

Rabin ruled out a total withdrawal from Judea and Samaria and thus a return to the pre-June 1967 borders :

“The borders of the State of Israel, during the permanent solution, will be beyond the lines which existed before the Six Day War. We will not return to the 4 June 1967 lines.”

Rabin ruled out withdrawing form the Jordan Valley:

“The security border of the State of Israel will be located in the Jordan Valley, in the broadest meaning of that term.”

Rabin ruled out uprooting settlement blocs, like the Gush Katif bloc in Gaza (which was subsequently uprooted by former Prime Minister Ariel Sharon):

“The establishment of blocs of settlements in Judea and Samaria, like the one in Gush Katif.

AND

Rabin ruled out removing any settlement before coming to a full peace agreement with the Palestinians:

“I want to remind you: we committed ourselves, that is, we came to an agreement, and committed ourselves before the Knesset, not to uproot a single settlement in the framework of the interim agreement, and not to hinder building for natural growth.”

Rabin insisted on Israel retaining full security control of the borders with Egypt and Jordan, contrary to Israel’s relinquishment of the Philadelphia Corridor on the border with Egypt:

“The responsibility for external security along the borders with Egypt and Jordan, as well as control over the airspace above all of the territories and Gaza Strip maritime zone, remains in our hands.”

Correcting Oslo Myths-Part 2

3) Kuttab laments that the post-1993 Oslo process resulted in a Palestinian Authority "whose ministers and legislators are not guaranteed passage between Gaza and the West Bank ...."

Before free passage or other perquisites, PA leaders were obligated, among other things, to eliminate the terrorist infrastructure in the West Bank and Gaza Strip, end anti-Israeli, antisemitic incitement in schools, mosques, and communications media, and resolve all outstanding issues through peaceful negotiations. They met none of these commitments, sometimes bolstering terrorism and greatly increasing incitement.

4) Kuttab complains that under Oslo the PA got "lightly armed police ---- but no real sovereignty over the land or contiguity between our communities in Gaza and the West Bank."

Oslo agreements repeatedly were revised, regardless of Palestinian non-compliance, until the authorized number of police grew from 8,000 to 40,000. Though they were to be the only armed forces in the territories, Israeli estimates early in the second intifada put the number of gunmen - police, "security services," terrorists, and armed gangs - at 85,000. Their armament reportedly included not only heavy machine guns and rocket-propelled grenades, but also anti-tank and anti-aircraft missiles.

Sovereignty was to be negotiated in the envisioned 1998 "final status" talks - after a five-year period of confidence-building. Palestinian leadership chronically undermined the process. Palestinian terrorism made the 1993 - 1998 Oslo period more deadly for Israelis than the 15 years preceding it.

The United States doesn't have contiguity between the lower 48 states and Alaska and Hawaii; territorial contiguity between the West Bank and Gaza Strip - that is, through the 20 miles of Israeli territory between them - was never promised and would destroy Israeli contiguity.

5) "Palestinians have been made to endure hundreds of checkpoints in the West Bank, an eight-foot wall deep in our territories, and tight Israeli control over borders."

The security barrier is not "deep in Palestinian territories," but rather encompasses less than 8 percent of Judea and Samaria, and is mostly a fence, rarely a wall; the land in question is not "our [Palestinian] territories" but disputed territory to which, according to the authors of U.N. Security Council Resolution 242, Jews as well as Arabs have claims; and there are no international borders, only the 1949 armistice lines with Jordan. Under 242, borders remain to be negotiated. As for checkpoints - like the security barrier and "tight Israeli control" - Palestinian Arabs precipitated these measures themselves. No terrorism and there would be no fence or tight Israeli control and few checkpoints - like before the first intifada.

Correcting Some Oslo Myths

1) In Oslo "Israeli, Palestinian and other world leaders promised that ... Palestinian sovereignty would be solidified."

No, they didn't. The 1993 Declaration of Principles and subsequent Oslo agreements outlined a process by which final status negotiations about the West Bank and Gaza Strip would be reached. The process required an end to anti-Israel terrorism and incitement and a commitment to peaceful negotiations. The PA, Fatah, Hamas, Islamic Jihad, the Popular Front for the Liberation of Palestine, and other terrorist groups, sabotaged the process from the start.

2) "The reality is that, in defiance of U.N. Security Council Resolution 242, which states that it is inadmissible to occupy land by force, Palestinian territories are still under foreign military occupation."
Wrong again. Resolution 242 (1967) does note "the inadmissibility of the acquisition of territory by war." It also affirms the right of every state in the area "to live in peace with secure and recognized boundaries free from threats or acts of force." There were no "Palestinian territories." Jordan occupied the West Bank, Egypt controlled Gaza. Israel did not have "secure and recognized boundaries," so retention of some of those territories was possible under 242. Israel is not a "foreign" military occupier in the West Bank but, pending final negotiations, the lawful military administrator as a result of a successful war of self-defense.

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