"reject demilitarization...distinguish between legitimate resistance and
terror."

The Palestinian Leadership’s Regression in the Peace Process
Lt. Col. (ret.) Jonathan D. Halevi
Jerusalem Issue Briefs Vol. 15, No. 20 July 1, 2015
Institute for Contemporary Affairs Founded jointly with the Wechsler Family
Foundation
http://jcpa.org/article/palestinian-regression-peace-process/

-Dr. Saeb Erekat, a member of the PLO Executive Committee and head of the
Palestinian negotiating team, published a new position paper on June 18 that
includes a set of recommendations for the Palestinian leadership.
-The document outlines a Palestinian strategy for a diplomatic struggle with
Israel. Its main points include:

-Annulling the PLO’s recognition of Israel
-A diplomatic campaign to recruit international support to coerce an Israeli
withdrawal to the 1967 lines
-Insisting on the “right of return” of Palestinian “refugees” along with
their descendants
-Rejection of any proposals for a temporary or partial settlement with
Israel
-A legal battle against Israel in the international arena aimed at
constraining Israel’s ability to defend itself against Palestinian terror
-Strategic cooperation with Hamas and Islamic Jihad by integrating them into
the PLO’s institutions
-The waging of an all-out “peaceful popular struggle” against Israel
(defined by Palestinian leadership as local terror attacks
-The document reflects the old Palestinian strategy of “stages,” which
regards an Israeli withdrawal to the 1967 borders as affording an improved
posture to continue the struggle.

Below is a full translation of the recommendations section of Erekat’s
position paper: 1

Recommendations

In light of the ongoing Israeli settlement activity and its increase by 40
percent in 2014, along with Israel’s opposition to locating the boundaries
of the two states on the June 4, 1967 border, and, in addition, its
opposition to releasing the fourth group of prisoners [who were arrested]
before the Oslo [agreements], the piratical seizure and holding of the
monies of the Palestinian people, the holding of other monies, and the
escalation of attacks, clashes, invasions, the denials of agreements, and
the continued blockade of the Gaza Strip by land, sea, and air.

[In light of] the definition of the relations with Israel, the
implementation of the Palestinian national reconciliation, the State of
Palestine’s continued joining of international institutions and conventions,
and the enhancement of our relations in the Arab and international domains
becoming a supreme national need, on this basis we make the following
recommendations:

1. To call on the occupation authority [Israel] to take full responsibility
for the Palestinian people in the occupied State of Palestine (the West
Bank, eastern Al-Quds [Jerusalem], and the Gaza Strip), so long as it
[Israel] has not consented to fulfill the obligations imposed on it in the
signed agreements, including reconsideration of the security and economic
relations. We warn against entering any negotiations to improve the
situation, since the goal is to change the situation by implementing the
resolutions of the Palestinian Central Council that were published in March
2015.

2. Total opposition to the “State of Gaza” plan, presenting it as a useless
notion, making a connection between it and the relinquishment of Al-Quds
[Jerusalem] and the right of return of the refugees, and as vitiating the
Palestinian national program.

3. The UN Security Council: Holding consultations via the Arab Committee
that was established by the Arab League on January 15, 2015, with the
members of the Security Council and with regional and international
organizations, on preparing a new proposal for a resolution to be brought
before the Security Council after its approval by the Arab Committee, whose
members are Kuwait, Egypt, Jordan, Morocco, Palestine, and the
secretary-general of the Arab League.

In this context, we warn against the possible preparation of a proposal for
a UN Security Council resolution that includes all the elements that have
been rejected by the Palestinians and the Arabs, such as the Jewish state,
leaving occupation forces along the Jordan River, or the principle of
territorial swaps, demilitarization of the state, and vague formulations
regarding Al-Quds [Jerusalem] and refugees.

It should be emphasized that the drafting of a new proposal for a Security
Council resolution must include: the establishment of the State of Palestine
on the 1967 lines with eastern Al-Quds [Jerusalem] as its capital; a
solution of the refugee problem based on Resolution 194; the release of the
prisoners; the negation of the Jewish state or any security formulations
whose import is to leave Israeli forces along the Jordan River and anything
entailing a continued division between the Gaza Strip and the West Bank;
reliance on the Arab Peace Initiative with all of its components and the
legitimate international resolutions from Resolution 242 to General Assembly
Resolution 19/67 of 2012 that recognized the State of Palestine as an
observer member; adherence [to the demand] to put a total stop to
settlements in the West Bank, including in eastern Al-Quds [Jerusalem] and
with no exceptions; and the release of the prisoners.

This should be aimed at launching a peace process with an international
summit meeting under international supervision, which will include, in
addition to the permanent member states of the Security Council,
representatives of Arab states, the European Union, and the BRICS states
[Brazil, Russia, India, China, and South Africa], and the setting of a final
time-frame for negotiations over the course of one year, and the full
implementation of the agreement within a period that will not exceed two
years.

The PLO Executive Committee will be responsible for preparing a new proposal
for a Security Council resolution.

4. The international conventions: The PLO Executive Committee, headed by
President Mahmoud Abbas, will be responsible for the activity of the Supreme
National Committee in matters related to the International Criminal Court,
and specifically regarding preparation of the file on aggression against the
Gaza Strip in 2014, and the file on settlement from 1967 to the present, in
a way that will include all the settlement actions including terror by
settler groups, land confiscations, home destructions, the bypass roads, the
infrastructure, settlement construction in all its forms, the racist
separation fence, and so on, and continued active monitoring of the
implementation of the rulings of the International Court, while using them
as a source of legal authority on the issue of settlement and the fence in
all of our international activities.

The State of Palestine will officially submit on June 25, 2015, all the
files and the responses to the questions of the International Criminal
Court, and in particular the file on settlement and aggression against the
Gaza Strip and the prisoners.

Likewise, the Executive Committee will monitor the activity of the
Ministerial Committee that was established to attune the Palestinian laws
and the responsibilities imposed on the State of Palestine as a result of
joining a number of international conventions.

This includes preparing the ground for joining a number of additional
treaties, institutions, conventions, protocols, and international
agreements, whose number after being joined will come to 484 conventions. It
also includes continued efforts vis-à-vis the secretary-general of the
United Nations to establish a special regime for international protection of
the Palestinian people in the occupied State of Palestine.

5. Emphasizing to the international community that the State of Palestine’s
joining of international conventions, including the International Criminal
Court, is considered a right of the State of Palestine and a step that had
to be taken so as to uphold the principle of two states on the June 4, 1967
lines and avoid compromising the interests of the Palestinian people.

6. Monitoring of the legal claims that are submitted against the Palestinian
Authority and its institutions in American courts, the appeal on the recent
ruling of the court in New York, submission of claims against the government
of Israel for killing of Palestinian civilians who hold American
citizenship, and highlighting the recent decision of the United States
Supreme Court on June 7, 2015, that refused to recognize Al-Quds [Jerusalem]
as part of Israel.

7. Continued activity among the states of the European Union to secure their
recognition of the State of Palestine on the 1967 lines whose capital is
eastern Al-Quds [Jerusalem], particularly in light of the recognition of the
Swedish government and the vote of a number of European parliaments in favor
of recognizing the State of Palestine.

8. Stepping up activity vis-à-vis the European Union to gain support for the
State of Palestine in its efforts to submit the file on settlement and
Israeli aggression against the Gaza Strip in 2014 to the International
Criminal Court, and likewise to implement the resolutions of the parties to
the Geneva Conventions of 1949, so as to apply the Fourth Geneva Convention
of 1949 to the Palestinian people in the occupied State of Palestine (the
West Bank including eastern Al-Quds [Jerusalem] and the Gaza Strip), taking
into consideration that the European Union welcomed the State of Palestine’s
joining of the International Criminal Court and acceptance as a party to the
1949 Geneva Conventions.

9. Activity vis-à-vis the European Union to reinforce the European
guidelines on boycotting products of the Israeli settlements on the occupied
Palestinian and Arab lands, and particularly in light of the fact that 16
states of the European Union took a decision to add labels to all settlement
products, while continuing the resolute activity to bring an end to all
activity of foreign companies in the settlements.

10. Activity vis-à-vis all the institutions of the European Union to prevent
the addition of any Palestinian movement or organization to the terrorism
list, while adopting a resolution that will distinguish between legitimate
resistance and terror.

11. Continued activity and coordination with the Committee of the Arab Peace
Initiative headed by Egypt, while ensuring that it meets regularly and
whenever there is a need for it.

12. Including the Arab League in efforts of the State of Palestine to submit
the settlements file and the file on aggression against the Gaza Strip in
2014 to the International Criminal Court in The Hague.

13. Continued activity of the Arab Ministerial Committee (Kuwait, Palestine,
and the secretary-general of the Arab League) vis-à-vis Switzerland, the
depositary state of the 1949 Geneva Conventions, to find ways to apply the
Fourth Geneva Convention of 1949 to the Palestine people in the occupied
State of Palestine (the West Bank including eastern Al-Quds and the Gaza
Strip).

Pulling Palestinian Recognition of Israel

14. Weighing the possibility of removing the PLO’s recognition of the state
of Israel, so that there will be mutual recognition between the state of
Israel and the State of Palestine on the June 4, 1967 lines.

15. The PLO will continue to serve as the sole legitimate representative of
the Palestinian people in all its locations.

16. The State of Palestine’s membership in all of the regional and
international organizations and institutions will be maintained.

17. Accelerating the work on reaching a Palestinian reconciliation, in a way
that will ensure an agreement on holding elections for the presidency of
Palestine and for the Palestinian National Council, and will enable the
government of national agreement to fulfill all of its responsibilities
regarding the Gaza Strip.

Re-Engage with the Hamas and Islamic Jihad

18. Before the elections are held, the Palestinian National Council must
convene with the participation of Hamas and Islamic Jihad to elect a new
Executive Committee of the PLO so that a temporary government of the State
of Palestine will be established in keeping with UN General Assembly
Resolution 19/67 of 2012.

19. Emphasizing that the Palestinian National Council is the parliament of
the State of Palestine.

20. The holding of the seventh convention of the Fatah movement no later
than the end of 2015.

21. The [PLO] Executive Committee will perform direct, detailed, periodic,
and regular monitoring of the situation in the capital city Al-Quds
[Jerusalem], develop its institutions, and defend it heroically and
courageously and its national soil, and the steadfastness of our people on
its land, and its Christian and Islamic holy places, and will hold a weekly
meeting on this issue, opposing and struggling against the division
according to [a criterion] of time and place of the blessed Al-Aqsa Mosque.

22. Continued support for the struggle of the prisoners for freedom and
against the Israeli policy of terror, and activity to secure the return of
the expellees of the Church of the Nativity.

23. Direct support for the popular struggle, and particularly against
settlement, and development of the connection and the support in the
national and regional committees, putting this at the top of the
responsibilities of the PLO and its institutions in all the domains.

24. Direct interest in the situation of the Palestinian concentrations in
the refugee camps and active and more effective monitoring by the Executive
Committee of the situation of our people in Syria, Lebanon, and the
diaspora, and particularly of the recent indecisiveness on the question of
the Yarmouk camp.

25. Development of public diplomacy and cultural activity for the protection
of the national identity and against any form of extremism and terror and
for propagation of the values of tolerance, enlightenment, and justice and
the rest of the values of humanity.

When we call to define the relationship with Israel, or direct a call to the
occupation government [Israel] to assume its full responsibility, this is
not a call to dismantle the Palestinian National Authority, which we view as
a fruit of the struggle of the Palestinian people, rather, what we intend is
to oppose Israel’s activity to turn the Palestinian National Authority
(which was founded to shift the Palestinian people from occupation to
independence) into an authority that pays salaries and conducts security
coordination, since successive Israeli governments have succeeded to wrest
powers from the Palestinian Authority in all areas of security, geography,
personal, legal, and economic status. [underlined in original]

There is no need to discuss dismantling the Palestinian Authority or not
dismantling it, because the matter is not on the agenda. But what is
required concerns the duty to find a way to create a necessary balance in
the existing Palestinian-Israeli relations on the basis of mutual
obligations, and not only Palestinian obligations without Israeli
obligations. [underlined in original]

As we have outlined a strategy, Israel too has outlined a strategy that is
based on: [underlined in original]
-Leaving the Palestinian Authority without authority, (that is, operative
authority).
-Continuation of the Israeli occupation, including the settlements and the
Judaization of Al-Quds [Jerusalem] and without paying a price.
-Leaving the Gaza Strip outside the framework of Palestinian jurisdiction,
in such a way that there will be a state in the Gaza Strip or that will
ensure that a Palestinian state will not be established, since it is not
possible to establish it without the Gaza Strip.
-Establishing the concept of one state with two systems [authorities].

It is impossible to accept the continuation of the current situation, and
particularly after the formation of the most extreme Israeli government in
the history of Israel, and in light of the rise of the Arab list in the
elections “inside” [Israel] as manifested in the agreement between the Arab
[political] blocs to establish the United Arab List, and the positive
implications this holds for the future.

Implementation of the Palestinian strategy in all the spheres – the Arab,
the American, the Israeli, the European, Russia, China, and the BRICS
states, the unaligned states, the Organization of American States and the
African Union, and before that, in the Palestinian sphere with regard to the
need to end the division and carry out the reconciliation, while augmenting
the steadfastness of our people on the land of the occupied state in the
West Bank including eastern Al-Quds and the Gaza Strip, and the escalation
of the tactics of the peaceful popular struggle [مقاومة] in the framework of
an ongoing and systematic program, and in addition to the joining by the
State of Palestine of institutions, conventions, laws, and protocols — all
these as ways of shortening the path to returning the State of Palestine on
the 1967 lines, with its capital in eastern Al-Quds [Jerusalem], to the
geographic map.

* * *

Note

1 http://www.alwatanvoice.com/arabic/news/2015/06/18/731476.html

==============
About Lt. Col. (ret.) Jonathan D. Halevi

Lt. Col. (ret.) Jonathan D. Halevi is a senior researcher of the Middle East
and radical Islam at the Jerusalem Center for Public Affairs. He is a
co-founder of the Orient Research Group Ltd.