By Haider Ali.
Following Israel’s constant violations of international law, the abuse of human rights and daily humiliations of the Palestinian peoples, I had the chance to interview a distinguished scholar upon the topic and often much maligned professor Norman Fineklstein about the current predicaments facing the region.
1. Do you still think the two-state solution you advocate is feasible in the face of Israel’s policy of settlement expansion?
The Israeli settlements occupy less than one percent of the West Bank. The Palestinian Authority has submitted maps that enable Israel to keep most of the settlers while annexing only 1.9 percent of the West Bank, and this 1.9 percent can be compensated for by a land swap of equal size and quality within Israel near Gaza. Resolving the Palestinian refugee question within a two-state framework is more difficult but that has always been the case.
2. Whilst the United States support Israel in a variety of ways, why do you think it continues to do so, despite the fact that it harms their standing within the region?
The harm that Israel does to U.S. standing in the region is not very significant. It has never translated into popular pressure on the reactionary Arab regimes that threaten these regimes and by extension U.S. interests. The U.S. supports Israel because regionally they have overlapping strategic agendas: to dominate and control the region.
3. Do you see Israel existing beyond the next decade if it continues to defy international law?
Nothing changes on its own. But Israel now faces two formidable regional challenges in the form of the Resistance Axis (Iran, Syria, Hezbollah) and the democratic revolts now sweeping parts of the Arab world. Neither of these developments can please Israel because both of them challenge directly or indirectly Israel’s regional supremacy.
4. Is the armed resistance of the Palestinians the only route to securing their own state considering the failure of diplomacy thus far?
Armed resistance is and always was a dead end for Palestinians in the occupied territories. The only viable opposition is a mass nonviolent movement supported by solidarity movements in the West.
5. In your honest opinion, can you see a long-lasting peace ever being negotiated between the two peoples?
Public opinion in the West is becoming much more hostile to Israel. If the revolts sweeping the Arab world bring more representative governments into power the pressure coming from the Arab world to justly settle the conflict will significantly increase. There’s every reason to be hopeful IF we get our act together and the Palestinians get their act together. God helps those who help themselves.
I would like to thank Professor Norman Finkelstein for taking time out of his busy schedule to answer my questions. To readers of this newspaper I would like to recommend Mr. Finkelstein’s latest book release in relation to the recent Gaza War. It’s an excellent read an can be found in most books stores.
