by Hillel Fendel
What happened was that while the nationalist camp was divided on whether to concentrate on the full or the empty half-cup of the Trump Deal of the Century, and while Prime Minister Netanyahu himself couldn't seem to decide whether or not he favored sovereignty in Judea and Samaria, the decision was made for us: The signing of a peace deal between Israel and the United Arab Emirates all but took sovereignty off the table, as the UAE made this a condition for signing.
As Yehuda Bitan writes in the current issue of the Yesha biweekly Shelanu, while it is too early to tell how the peace deal will turn out, it is not at all too early to see the blessing in the fact that it saved us from sovereignty: "Declaration of Israeli sovereignty over Yesha [in the framework of the Trump Deal] is essentially a declaration of new borders, in coordination with America and, according to the Blue and White Party's demand, with Europe as well."
What's wrong with an agreed-upon border? Bitan continues: "An international border determined under American and possibly European auspices would form a strong legal reality that would have been quite difficult to change without miraculous intervention."
Yes, this border would have granted most of the Jewish-populated areas in Yesha the status of mainland Israel – but it also would essentially have formed and delineated a Palestinian state in our very midst! The dangers thereof include the launching of terror attacks and missiles [as from Gaza and Lebanon]; threats on the Gedera-Tel Aviv-Hadera area where most of Israel's population resides; threats on Ben Gurion International Airport; – and the eventual re-takeover of the area by Israel, at a terrible cost of human life and property destruction.
The Council of Jewish Communities in Yesha (known as the Yesha Council), aware of these dangers of the Trump Deal, came out against the push for sovereignty under these circumstances. In a sharply-worded article, Council Director Yigal Dilmoni responds to those who do not agree with this position:
"Some friends of mine whom I truly admire have been strongly criticizing the Yesha Council, saying that we missed a 'great opportunity' and wondering how we did not seize the 'historic hour.' Some of them claim to have true expertise in diagnosing historic myopia, and deign to give us grades in policy and strategy. Too bad they don't give themselves scores in ignoring facts; they would have received 100.
"Throughout the years, the Yesha Council has successfully identified dangers, even when the politicians and media wrapped them in honey and promised us a 'new Middle East.' In every public dispute, we always saw through the party politics and vain talk, and remained focused only on that which is most important: Our commitment to this historical Biblical land of Judea, Samaria and the Jordan Valley.
"During the early 90's, when the Rabin government signed the Oslo Agreements and brought armed terrorists to Ramallah and Nablus in the form of 'PA policemen,' we cried out, 'Don't give them guns!' And during the Second Intifada, when everyone said that terrorism could be stopped only by negotiations and retreats, we called, 'Let the IDF win!' Only after hundreds of terror victims did the Sharon government initiate Operation Defensive Shield, thus proving how right we were. And when Sharon 'disengaged' from Gush Katif and promised us a Singapore in Gaza, we warned that it would explode in our faces... Sometimes it's sad to be so right.
"Basically, no one understands the settlement enterprise and its needs, or cares for it, more than we do.
"It still amazes me that these wise and well-meaning people close their eyes to the danger of a Palestinian state, and continue to criticize us for not being awake to the 'beating of the wings of history' – when in fact these wings bore only a stern warning of the clear and immediate danger of irreversible facts on the ground. We said all along: "Sovereignty must be done right, without a Palestinian state." This is how a responsible leadership acts, with responsibility to its population's future. While commentators can talk all they want and later say, 'woops, we were wrong' – we have a national responsibility and we can't afford to be wrong.
"Trump's advisor Jared Kushner provided the proof that we were right when he recently lamented, 'For the first time there was agreement on a Palestinian state and borders.' Even Rabin never agreed to a Palestinian state! And neither may the current government ever agree to such a thing – even if it is contingent upon conditions that the other side will never fulfill. My above-mentioned friends say that since the Arabs will never implement their part of the bargain, there is nothing to fear – and we say that they are guilty of wishful and naïve thinking." For who exactly will turn back the clock when the other side does not fulfill its conditions?
"Sovereignty will come," Dilmoni continues, "but in the right way. After the Women in Green movement first raised the banner of sovereignty, we, the Yesha Council, set it as our central goal and vision. Many eyebrows were raised, and many pundits wondered yet again at the "short-sighted Messianism" of the settlers. "Don't they realize that the only solution is two states and the relocation of the Jews in Yesha to the Negev and Galilee?" they asked. Yet it is now clear that sovereignty is a central issue on the public agenda. The question is not whether sovereignty will happen, but when.
"Now is the time to strengthen the Jewish settlement enterprise in Yesha with more construction, development, infrastructures and absorption of new residents. At the same time, there must be a non-compromising campaign to preserve Area C [that which the Oslo Accords stipulate are under complete Israeli control].
"True, Prime Minister flubbed a historic opportunity to do the right thing for the Jewish Nation and declare sovereignty [outside the framework of the Trump Deal]. But it will happen – if not this year, then the next. We push in the present, and the fruits will come in the future. That's how we are: people who see far ahead."