Resurgent right dashes peace hopes as Mitchell flies to Israel

[DogPoundPup]

Barack Obama's new Middle East peace envoy, George Mitchell, arrives in Israel tomorrow charged with working towards an Israeli-Palestinian peace agreement. But the expected victory of the right in the Israeli election on 10 February may doom his efforts from the outset.

Benjamin Netanyahu, who did much to bury the Oslo peace accords when he was last prime minister in 1996-99, will almost inevitably be the next prime minister, according to the latest opinion polls. His right-wing Likud party is likely to be the largest party, and the right-wing bloc of extreme religious and nationalist parties is likely to have a majority in the Israeli parliament. Mr Netanyahu would probably have won without the war in Gaza, but the conflict has shifted Israelis significantly to the right. "Prior to the war there was already disillusionment with negotiations and the peace process," says Galia Golan, political science professor at the Interdisciplinary Centre at Herzliya, near Tel Aviv. "Patriotism and nationalism were whipped up as never before by the media who treated the war as if it was one of the wars when we were really under attack."

Benefiting from this jingoism, the biggest winner in the election is likely to be the super-nationalist Yisrael Beitenu party of Avigdor Lieberman with its generalised anti-Arab racism. A likely coalition partner of Mr Netanyahu, Mr Lieberman recently suggested that Israeli-Arab MPs be treated like Hamas. "Ideas that nobody would have dared to let cross their lips 10 or 20 years ago, lest they be thought utter fascists, have been bolstered in recent months by the war in the south," lamented the daily Haaretz.

more...http://www.independent.co.uk/news/world/middle-east/resurgent-right-dashes-peace-hopes-as-mitchell-flies-to-israel-1516806.html

[rwheeler31]

1. Why is Israel detemind to destroy itself?

[henank]

2. Why do you consider this as Israel being determined

to destroy itself? Perhaps it is determined to save itself. Why do you consider that right-wing parties (and they're not all extreme religious, notwithstanding that the 2 words are always put together on this forum) will destroy Israel? If you look at Israel's recent history, it is the concessions provided and weakness shown by the left wing parties that have brought the most trouble (intifadas, wars). Perhaps the Israeli have decided to have a rethink.

What makes you such an expert on what Israelis think?

[azurnoir]

3. So extending the status quo and expanding

settlements in the West Bank are what is good for Israel?

[Name removed]

4. Deleted message

Message removed by moderator. Click here to review the message board rules.

[Vegasaurus]

5. Please pay attention to the rules of the forum

Not all liberals hate Israel.

Not all "left wing" party members, including Democrats here on DU, would like to see Israel abolished.

There is no need to tell a poster with a different POV to go post on Freerepublic.