Jul 27, 2019 – JORDAN TIMES EDITORIAL
Palestinian leader Mahmoud Abbas is, of course, right in suspending all agreements signed with Israel after realising that enforcement of these agreements is one-sided and a one-way street in favour of Israel.
Abbas noted that Israel is only interested in the agreements pertaining to security issues and only wants the Palestinian Authority to simply keep the tabs on its own people to serve Israel’s own security interests.
The Palestine Liberation Organisation (PLO) and Israel signed the Oslo Accord I in Washington, DC, in 1993 and Oslo Accord II in Taba, Egypt, in 1995. The accords, which include a set of agreements between the PLO and Israel, were signed with much fanfare as heralding the peaceful resolution of the Palestinian conflict.
The accords were never intended to be the “end game” between the two sides. Rather, they were intended to serve as interim peace agreements that would lead to a final peace pact, establishing a free and independent Palestinian state in the West Bank, with East Jerusalem serving as its capital.
This goal turned out to be just a mirage aiming to consolidate Israel’s grip on Palestinian territories. Israel has been reneging on these accords all along and from day one, especially when Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu assumed power as Israel’s prime minister in 2009.
The last 10-year rule of Netanyahu saw relations between Israel and the Palestinians deteriorate so drastically that left no room for reconciliation or the resumption of meaningful peace talks. On the contrary, Israel deepened and extended its occupation of the West Bank, and prevented the start of any real peace talks between the two sides.
Under the circumstances, the Palestinians are left with no choice but to suspend their cooperation with Israel on the implementation of the Oslo accords. The Palestinians should have taken the decision to halt the implementation of the Oslo Accords a long time ago. But as the saying goes: better late than never!
Maybe now Israel would appreciate more the value of the Palestinians’ support to the Oslo accords and stop its acts of aggression and oppression against the Palestinian people.
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Categories: Arab World, Asia, Israel, Palestine