Israeli Elections Are Not an Impediment to Peace

"Syria Says Peace Talks Have Been Postponed as the Israelis Prepare for Elections"

Robert F. Worth

Let it be clear that the Israeli democratic process of determining a new prime minister is not what is holding back an accord with Syria. Think for a moment what this title and parts of the subsequent article imply: The mechanics of Israel's functioning democracy are impeding an agreement. One must conclude, Better to have a dictatorship like Syria. 

In an article that presents the Syrian perspective on an Israel-Syria accord, certain omissions deserve mention. Other parts of the article suffer from under-explanation.

Worth writes that one of Syria's demands is the return of the Golan Heights, but he doesn't state the other piece of that demand - access to the Kinneret, also known as the Sea of Galilee. This is the real sticking point. The author also fails to mention an important fact: Israel absorbed the Golan Heights into one of six administrative districts in the state, the North District, in 1981, an action which it hasn't executed in Judea & Samaria, or the Jordan's west bank.

Another aspect of the article is France's role in the Levant. President Nicolas Sarkozy is hard pressed to explain how his engagement with Syria is in Lebanon's interest. Syria has dominated Lebanon for the last several decades. The French President looks foolish when he declares, "We will affirm Lebanon's sovereignty and independence."

Worth notes the involvement of Qatar in the meeting and credits it with "successfully [mediating] a new peace agreement between Lebanon's feuding political factions in May." The outcome of this mediation is Hezbollah's dominance of the Lebanese government. That cannot be deemed a success.

Abes