Herewith the record of dealings among Israel, the Muslims of the region (and elsewhere), and with the United States government. This record reeks of timidity and fatuity, in Foggy Bottom and also in Tel Aviv.

Israel v. Muslims: the record begins in 1999

1. November 16, 1999. Yasser Arafat:  “With rifles in hand we shall regain our homeland with Jerusalem as its eternal and undivided capital!”
2. November 17.  Benjamin Netanyahu:  “Mr. Arafat’s statement is provocative and contrary to the letter and spirit of Oslo and the [October 1998] Wye Memorandum rejecting violence. Further redeployment will depend on Mr. Arafat’s retraction.”
3. November 17.  Jerry Rubin at the State Department:  “We expect both sides to fulfill the [land for peace] terms of the Wye Memorandum.”
4. November 17.  CNN: “A war of words has broken out between President Arafat and Prime Minister Netanyahu. Arafat and Netanyahu obviously do not trust each other.”
5. November 17. Arafat: “I renounce the use of force to resolve our differences with Israel.”
6. November 17.  Netanyahu:  “I accept Chairman Arafat’s statement.  We can now begin to implement the Wye Memorandum.”
7. November 22. (after Israel withdraws from 6% of Area B). Arafat: “We have every right to establish a Palestinian state on May 4, 1999.”
8. November 23. Netanyahu:  “If Arafat declares a Palestinian state, Israel shall declare sovereignty over the reminder of Judea and Samaria!”
9. November 23.  Jerry Rubin:  “We deplore any unilateral action by either side.”
10. November 23.  CNN:  “Another war of words has broken out between President Yasser Arafat and Prime Minister Netanyahu.   There is mistrust on both sides.”
11. November 24. Arafat: “I agree that the final status of this land must be determined through negotiation.”
12. November 25.  Netanyahu:  “I welcome the words of Chairman Arafat.  We can now proceed with the next stage of our withdrawal.”
13. December 12, 1999. Arafat: “We shall drench this land with blood to make Jerusalem the capital of Palestine!”

Bill Clinton, Yitzhak Rabin, and Yasser Arafat at the White House, 13 September 1993. Photo: Vince Musi/The White House

14. December 13.  Secretary of State Madeleine Albright:  “The US refuses to take sides in this issue. Only the participants to the controversy can make peace. But we deplore any violent rhetoric and we shall inform Israel and the Palestinian Authority of our views in this matter.”
15. December 13.  Netanyahu: “There can be no peace until the Palestinian Authority renounces violence.  This is why we have postponed further withdrawal [from Judea and Samaria].”

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16. December 15.  Arafat:  “We want peace for our people and for the Israelis.  We shall fulfill the [non-violence] terms of the Wye Memorandum, and we expect Israel to do the same.”
17. December 16.  Netanyahu:  “I welcome Chairman Arafat’s words, and I want to assure him that Israel will comply with the Wye Memorandum.  Indeed, I have given orders to release 400 Arab terrorists, and I expect the remaining 350 will be released in due course.”
18. December 16.  CNN. “President Yasser Arafat and Prime Minister Netanyahu seem to have toned down their rhetoric, but mutual suspicion remains.”
19. January 1, 2000. Arafat. “I call our brothers to arm for the forthcoming war with Israel!”
20. January 1.  Foreign Minister Sharon: “I call on all settlers to grab every clump of dirt they can.”
21. January 1. Minister Yitzhak Mordechai: “We must do nothing to antagonize the Palestinians!”
22. January 1.  Netanyahu:  “I have spoken to Mr. Arafat and he claims that it was not he but Sheik Yassin who uttered those inflammatory words which he, Arafat, sincerely deplores.  Accordingly, we shall proceed with the withdrawal of another 7% from Judea and Samaria.  And I have also ordered the release of another 200 Arab terrorists.”
23. January 1.  CNN:  Right-wing extremists have blocked several highways leading to Ben-Gurion airport in protest against any further withdrawal from the West Bank.  Meanwhile, Israeli taxi drivers have gone on strike.  Thousands of people visiting Israel have been stranded at Ben-Gurion airport, and thousands of tourists trying to leave the country have been holed up in their hotels.  Netanyahu is calling an emergency meeting of his cabinet to deal with the problem.  President Arafat claims that this is an Israeli plot to stall the Wye Agreement.  He obviously mistrusts Netanyahu and has called upon President Clinton to intervene. The President has ordered the CIA to settle the taxi drivers strike as part of its job to supervise compliance with the Wye Memorandum.  Also, it has been reported that the CIA has put into operation a plan to deal with right-wing opponents of the peace process.
24. January 2.  Arafat:  “My brothers and sisters and children of the intifada:  you started with stones, and now you have rifles and machine guns.  Soon we shall liberate all of our homeland.”
25. January 2, 2000.  Shimon Peres:  “I am convinced that we are on the verge of an era of peace in the Middle East, an era of mutual trust and confidence between Jews and Arabs.”

The Finale: June 14, 2009. Prime Minister Netanyahu endorses the creation of a Palestinian state in Judea and Samaria.

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