I wrote on June 14 of the possibility that Jordan and/or Egypt might intervene in, respectively, the West Bank or Gaza because of the Hamas coup in Gaza. Egypt is plenty concerned because Hamas is a ideological child of the radical, Islamist Muslim Brotherhood, members of which assassinated President Anwar Sadat in 1981. Jordan is keeping a close eye on the possibility that Hamas may move to seize power in the West Bank.
Now former Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Natanyahu has openly called for Jordanian intervention:(IsraelNN.com) Opposition leader Binyamin Netanyahu has expanded on his general call for Egyptian and Jordanian intervention in the PA, and says Jordan should send over its PLO brigade. Speaking with Israeli reporters in Washington on Thursday, the former Prime Minister said that Fatah chief Abu Mazen cannot be expected to maintain law and order in Judea and Samaria on his own. He said that Jordan should dispatch its Palestinian force, known as the Badr Brigade. "The Badr Brigade, which is Jordanian-Palestinian, can create law and order," Netanyahu said.This idea was less than warmly received even by Bibi's political allies.
Moshe Feiglin, chairman of the Likud Party's Manhigut Yehudit (Jewish Leadership) faction, responded, "It is very sad that Netanyahu is reviving, via the back door, the Oslo illusion that Palestinian terrorists should protect the State of Israel against other Palestinian terrorists." ... "The members of the Badr Brigade have been there for many years," [MK Silvan] Shalom said, "and they are not the ones to bring order, chase after Palestinians, confiscate weapons and arrest them. Expecting Palestinians to do the job against Palestinians is silly."I have to wonder whether Bibi really thinks that, too, but is hoping that the Arabs of the West Bank and Jordan will have to spend their time and resources fighting each other rather than Israel.
Update: Here is an Israeli rabbi's response to Bibi.
Feiglin's small faction within the Likud is a Kahane-like, rabidly racist offshoot. (Hebrew has a small vocabulary and, unfortunately, "Manhig" is also the translation of "Führer"). Far be it from me to defend Likud, as I think many of them believe covertly what Feiglin, who I believe served prison time for conspiring anti-Arab violence, says openly, except, in this case, I think I have to. There are members of the Likud who can't stomach him.
Nothing is more certain to discourage Jordan from a course of action than having Bibi Netanyahu endorse it. Why, you might hope that Bibi wants to quash the idea, the better to see law and order maintained by his supporters in the Settler movement who have never given up hope for Greater Israel.
Which, incidentally, is where this news item appears to originate: the israelnationalnews site is most certainly not a government news agency. It would more accurately be called the Israel Nationalist News; it is the organ of people like Feiglin and other fanatical settlers, and surely gives Feiglin's beliefs more than the appropriate amount of attention..
Don't count on help from Egypt. The Mubarak regime spent the last couple of years helping Hamas build up its arsenal. They may or may not regret it now, but any help they may offer should be examined very carefully.
Isn't this just another assertion of something I've seen suggested from time to time: that, rather than creating a separate Palestinian state, Egypt and Jordan should re-access Gaza and the West Bank, respectively? Why they should want to is unclear to me.
Maybe it's inevitable that Israel will again step into Gaza, and crack down in the West Bank.
But before that happens, there needs to be a public attempt to get someone else involved.
Then the Israelis can say they didn't really want to, but no one else would do what needed to be done.
Andrew --
The general consensus of Israeli opinion is that the Israelis must be separate from the Palestinians so not to be overwhelmed demographically and through terrorism. And that there are no partners for peace, since withdrawal only gets attacks. See Lebanon and Gaza.
There seems to be a large dose of fantasy among Israelis that they can get Egypt and Jordan to solve their problems. Which is about as likely as Santa showing up in July. Egypt does not want Hamas-istan because the Hamas-Brotherhood groups would likely stage a coup against the Mubarak dynasty. Same for the Jordanian Kingdom and the West Bank.
Likely: Likud will play the fantasy game along with Kadima and Labor, until there is another big terrorist rocket attack (probably with poison gas) on Israel from Gaza, assisted by Iran and Qods Force / IRGC.
Then we will see Israel simply pushing out the Gazans into Egypt, making it a no-go zone for Gazans (deporting them by force to Egypt) and a security buffer for the military. Meanwhile probably taking most of the settlements out of the West Bank and making that the Palestinian State.
There will be no agreement with the Palestinians until they understand: they won't be able to destroy Israel, they won't be able to bargain in bad faith (i.e. they have to lose Gaza so the cost of simply waging endless terror is loss of territory forever) and that Israel will be relatively unconstrained in it's actions given Iranian patronage and Iran's desire for a second Holocaust.
This is about as likely to happen as Santa showing up in August right after his July visit, so very likely we will see endless war. Israel at least knows now there is no possibility for peace: Palestinians are intent on killing them all, and have Iranian patrons intent on assisting that enterprise. When you know your enemy wants nothing more than yourself and all your people dead it provides clarity.
and did not you think cho terrorism appeared as a result of other "terrorism"?
When you read Netanyahu's books and see him interviewed it is impossible not be unimpressed by his intelligence and his remarkable ability to articulate his views and solutions to Israel's problems.
Bibi's problem is that his views and his solutions, like this one, have very little to do with reality. Jordan is not going to intervene on the West bank under any situation other than an attack by the Palestinians on its own soil. And even if that were to come about, the Israelis would probably intervene first.
Israelis, even on the right have mixed views of Bibi's family and character, not withanding the undeniable heroism of his brother. I am surprised that Likud still clings to him as leader.
TOC at 8:06 pm on Jun 25, 2007-
Not intending to take you out of context, but #1 directly contradicts #2
Bibi is articulate, smart and consistent. He is exactly what Israel needs right now IMHO.
#8 from Robohobo at 5:31 am on Jun 27, 2007
TOC at 8:06 pm on Jun 25, 2007-
#1...it is impossible not be unimpressed by his intelligence and his remarkable ability to articulate his views and solutions to Israel's problems.
#2...I am surprised that Likud still clings to him as leader.
Not intending to take you out of context, but #1 directly contradicts #2
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I agree with you as far as your quoting me out of context. I also agree that the above statements are seemingly contradictory, especially when taken out of context by not including an intervening statement that I made.
Bibi's problem is that his views and his solutions, like this one, have very little to do with reality.
If you include that statement the remarks are not contradictory at all. One can be intelligent, articulate and wrong headed. My point is that this is the category where most israelis place Bibi.
I agree completely with the farmer. Netanyahu is irrelevant and wrong headed and the faster he fades from the scene the better.
Nice article