Palestine not only has a pie in the sky, it also has one off the coast of Gaza and many more across the land. The pies here are strategic economic assets for a Palestinian economy worthy of a state. But all of them are under total Israeli military control, rendering them paralyzed at best.

Until the collective international community — not just the United States —  starts using its political weight to hold Israel accountable for holding an entire economy — and people — hostage, the reality on the ground is bound to get worse and the forthcoming violence more deadly and damaging.

The first potential asset is the electromagnetic spectrum, better known as broadcast frequencies. These frequencies, are the media through which telephones, radios and televisions work. In Palestine, these frequencies above ground are occupied by the Israeli military, just like the land and water below.

The Israeli-Palestinian Interim Agreement signed on Sept. 28, 1995 regulates the bilateral relations between Palestinians and Israelis, and dedicates an entire annex specifically to the issue of telecommunications. It states as its first principle that “Israel recognizes that the Palestinian side has the right to build and operate separate and independent communication systems and infrastructures including telecommunication networks ...” (Annex 3, Article 36). Sounds great — until you read on. The rest of the annex is dedicated to making sure that the utilization of any economic resource required to actually build such networks would require unilateral Israeli approval.