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Thursday, September 10, 2009
Weekly Commentary: Many unanswered questions about freeze

Weekly Commentary: Many unanswered questions about freeze

Dr. Aaron Lerner Date: 10 September 2009

It would be a terrible mistake to dismiss the debate over the settlement
freeze as simply ideological.

The issues and concerns associated with the freeze should raise questions in
the minds of those who entertain the possibility of "territorial compromise"
just a much as for those who rule out any deal.

At this stage there is a lot we don't know. And it's far from clear just
how much we may end up knowing should the freeze be implemented.

Is the freeze open ended? First there was talk about limiting the freeze to
a specified period of time, but now we are hearing that the freeze would
continue indefinitely if the Arabs keep their side of the "gestures for
freeze" deal.

If that is indeed the case then what kind of "gestures" are we talking
about? After all, a collection of gestures that might justify a 6 month
freeze (that Israel may feel is necessary because of various other
considerations) would hardly justify a permanent one.

What's the freeze exit strategy? What's to prevent our finding ourselves in
a worse situation in the world after ending a freeze than if we never
started one in the first place?

Will there be transparency regarding the Israel-US freeze understanding, or
will we be told to rely on our Government to let us know the score.

Will Israel determine if there is Arab compliance or are we to rely on the
honesty of third parties (hint: American officials lied for years about
Palestinian compliance during Oslo because they believed it served their
interests).

Yes there are a lot of questions.

And if there is one thing we have learned here in Israel - it's that the
answer that "I rely on the Government" simply won't suffice.

Dr. Aaron Lerner, Director IMRA (Independent Media Review & Analysis)
(Mail POB 982 Kfar Sava)
Tel 972-9-7604719/Fax 972-3-7255730
INTERNET ADDRESS: imra@netvision.net.il
Website: http://www.imra.org.il

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