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Why Kerry should have skipped his stop in Israel

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu depends on his right-wing Knesset members for his political survival, and is not interested in US Secretary of State John Kerry's efforts for some goodwill gestures toward the Palestinians.
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If the Nov. 24 visit by US Secretary of State John Kerry to Jerusalem is to be judged by its contribution to advancing a diplomatic deal between Israel and the Palestinians, then Israeli news editors were right to push this non-event to the tail end of the news broadcasts and the back pages of the papers. The stories about the young women who were allegedly sexually harassed by Knesset member Yinon Magal (HaBayit HaYehudi) are far more newsworthy and interesting than another meaningless signature by Kerry on the attendance sheet at the prime minister’s office. The affair is a reminder that even in the religious HaBayit HaYehudi party — the standard bearer of “family values” — there are those who neglect to obey the seventh commandment, “Thou shalt not commit adultery” (Exodus 20:14). Even the scandal de jour involving Oren Hazan, the contemptible Knesset member (Likud) who, metaphorically, runs red lights and doesn’t even stop to let a wheelchair pass, is more relevant to Israel’s citizens and the residents of the occupied territories. Hazan’s sleazy, victorious smiles are a reminder of the flimsy foundations propping up the Israeli government.

But Kerry’s visit should not be judged by its usefulness to the diplomatic process, and not even by its contribution to preventing further deterioration of Israeli-Palestinian ties. The importance of this visit lies in the additional proof it provides of the impotence of the world’s strongest power. This visit belongs in the lengthy annals of US initiatives that intensified the sense of despair and hopelessness among the Israeli and Palestinian peace camps regarding the diplomatic option. In the words of Brig. Gen. Guy Goldstein, deputy coordinator of Israeli Government Activities in the Territories, “Absent combined diplomatic steps by Israel and the Palestinian Authority [PA], the current clash will not end.” Speaking on Oct. 28 at a conference at Netanya Academic College, the senior military officer added, “We are sitting on top of a kind of powder keg. Unless significant change occurs, mostly or entirely in the diplomatic arena, we will probably keep experiencing what we’re experiencing today.” His comments, the likes of which are being made behind closed doors by many defense officials, can be summed up in these words: Every piece of evidence pointing to the lack of significant change, such as another futile visit by an American secretary of state, pumps additional fuel to the fire burning under the powder keg.

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