Israel's New Diplomacy Needs Palestinians' New Unity

WASHINGTON, D.C. -- The balance of talk and action in the Middle East has not swung from war-making to peace-making, but it is inching in that direction -- testing the negotiating waters. I am less skeptical than most observers on the meaning of simultaneous Israeli negotiations respectively with Syria, Hamas, Hizbullah, and with the Palestinian Authority - not to mention Israel's offer to negotiate directly with Lebanon.

But beware simplistic or extreme interpretations: This is neither a dramatic, purposeful shift from wasteful war to a humane approach of nonviolent conflict resolution, nor a meaningless, coincidental convergence of happy negotiators. A few things do stand out in the current situation:

First, this is the third time in three years that Hamas has forced Israel into accepting a cease-fire, after Israel tried every aggressive, punitive, and occasionally barbaric, means to compel Hamas to surrender and change its ways, including starvation, strangulation, mass imprisonment, hundreds of assassinations, severe political sanctions, and ostracization. Three times in three years, David Hamas has forced Goliath Israel to sit down and talk -- the stuff of biblical epics.

Second, Hamas' performance and posture are indicative of wider trends and have probably pushed Israel into exploring diplomatic possibilities instead of relying mainly on its ability to kill and colonize Arabs and relying on Washington's blind support, which verges on criminal complicity in Israel's disregard of international law and UN resolutions. 

The technical and political dimensions of this seem obvious: At the technical level, Hamas has clearly improved its prowess in protecting and hiding its rocket launchers, giving it the ability to keep firing rockets at Israel despite the repeated Israeli attacks. At the political level, Hamas has absorbed important lessons from Hizbullah, Syria, and Iran in terms of standing up to and absorbing Israeli-American attacks and ultimatums, without collapsing.

Third, Israel seems to have grasped the fact that Washington's advice is lethal - maybe even fatal -- and best ignored when real Israeli national interests are at stake. The United States has persistently pushed Israel either to boycott or attack Hizbullah, Hamas, and Syria, and instead Israel is now negotiating with all three of them at once. 

The assertion of Israeli perspectives over American ones in this realm is healthy -- because Israeli policy will always be shaped by realistic and existential dictates, while American policy towards the Arab-Israeli conflict is largely dictated by a stunning combination of spinelessness, shamelessness and senselessness.

These are historic new developments in Arab-Israeli relations. We will find out in the coming months if the current penchant for negotiation will expand into a serious regional peace process. Many domestic and external factors will determine the outcome of current negotiations. One thing is certain, though: The Palestinian-Israeli conflict will reassert itself as the core issue that must be resolved if we hope to transform a troubled, violent region into a place where people can live more normal, peaceful lives.

All the peace talks taking place these days will eventually stall and collapse if the Palestinians remain split and Israeli-Palestinian negotiations come to an end. The urgent need to re-establish order, efficacy, and legitimacy in domestic Palestinian governance is now the single most important issue facing the Arab world, because it could impact positively on so many other regional issues. 

With the Hamas/Gaza-Israel ceasefire in effect, now is the time for Palestinians to move quickly to resolve their internal disputes, reconfigure a single, credible Palestinian government, and revive a serious peace negotiation with Israel. Palestinians should take advantage of the current ceasefire, act on the lessons learned from the last ten years of Israeli-Palestinians dynamics, and explore again the possibility of negotiating an end to the Arab-Israeli conflict.

This requires two critical elements that are now missing: a unified, credible, legitimate and efficacious Palestinian government with a clear strategy for negotiating with Israel; and, renewed integrity of the political unity of the entire Palestinian people. 

The first requires a Hamas-Fateh unity government that also draws in other key domestic players. This is widely demanded by the Palestinian people and should not be hard to achieve -- if the political leaders act like adults rather than children. Various Arab parties would welcome the opportunity to host talks to achieve a unified Palestinian government.

The second element requires reviving the institutions of the Palestine Liberation Organization (PLO) and consulting with Palestinians in the diaspora, including those living in refugee camps throughout the Arab world. Only a unified Palestinian government that legitimately speaks for all the Palestinian people has a chance of achieving meaningful progress towards a negotiated and fair peace with Israel. 

The Arab Peace Plan is there as an agreed, reasonable negotiating context, and Hamas has already made it clear that it will abide by the democratic decision of the Palestinian people on the issue of coexistence with Israel