What remains of this historic handshake which was to open the way to peace in Israel?
September 1993. Brought together by President Bill Clinton on the lawn of the White House, Israeli Prime Minister Yitzhak Rabin and Palestinian leader Yasser Arafat shake hands. With this symbolic gesture, the two men sealed the Oslo Accords, named after the Norwegian capital where reconciliation between the two enemy peoples had been negotiated in secret.
Thirty years later, peace efforts have given way to an escalation of violence the likes of which have not been seen in several decades.
PHOTO J. DAVID AKE, AGENCE FRANCE-PRESSE ARCHIVES
Brought together by President Bill Clinton on the White House lawn in September 1993, Israeli Prime Minister Yitzhak Rabin and Palestinian leader Yasser Arafat shook hands.
The surprise attack launched by Hamas, which controls the Gaza Strip, sowed terror in Israel. Hundreds of deaths. Young people murdered in the middle of a party. Innocent civilians taken hostage.
We can only condemn these actions of atrocious cruelty that nothing can justify.
The anger of the Israeli population calls for a muscular response against Hamas, which risks ending in bloodshed if Israeli forces enter the Gaza Strip. However, Israel must measure its response to avoid putting the hostages in danger.
At present, it is therefore very difficult to predict how the situation will evolve. But we can go back to understand how we got here.
So what happened to cause the hope of the Oslo Accords to disappear?
Maybe the worm was in the apple from the start…
Both peoples recognized the other’s right to exist, which was worth a handshake. But they left the more complex aspects of the negotiation on the table, starting with the thorny question of Jerusalem and the establishment of final borders.
These elements were to be decided during a five-year transition period which would have resulted in the creation of a Palestinian state. But as we never agreed, the transitional period dragged on.
Meanwhile, Israel has accelerated settlement activity in the West Bank, slowly but surely annexing Palestinian land. And the Palestinians continued their terrorist attacks that led to the second intifada.
In short, radical positions won out over moderate voices. It is the tyranny of extremes that reigns.
From now on, we find ourselves with a far-right Israeli government which is held in place thanks to a coalition with religious fundamentalist political parties. And Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, accused of corruption, is trying to impose judicial reform that will weaken the Supreme Court. And democracy.
On the other hand, Fatah led by Mahmoud Abbas remains at the head of the Palestinian Authority, even though there have been no elections for ages. But Hamas took control of the Gaza Strip.
The rivalries in the Palestinian camp led Benjamin Netanyahu to believe that there was nothing too serious to fear, while his attention was monopolized by the massive demonstrations by the Israelis against his judicial reform.
This impression was shared by the international community. Not even two weeks ago, US National Security Advisor Jake Sullivan claimed that the Middle East was calmer than it had been in two decades.
With the unwavering support of the Americans, Israel erred on the side of overconfidence in imagining that the security of its population was ensured thanks to its sophisticated secret services, its anti-missile shield and its wall encircling Gaza.
He deluded himself into believing that he could normalize his relations with the Arab world, within the framework of the Abraham Accords, by relegating the Palestinian question to second place.
After agreements with Bahrain, the United Arab Emirates, Morocco and Sudan, the prospect of an agreement with powerful Saudi Arabia made the Palestinians fear that their cause would be liquidated at a discount. And to Iran that it loses its influence in the region.
Saturday’s attack proves that nothing is resolved. That Palestinian aspirations for sovereignty are still very much alive, even if the planet has turned its attention away.
The international community may be running out of solutions to a crisis that has dragged on for so long. But inertia does not solve the problems. And the status quo is not acceptable.
But on both sides, the extremists who buried Oslo have offered nothing as an alternative. Instead, they have widened the gap that separates them, while peace can only come from compromise.
Thirty years ago, Yitzhak Rabin admitted that it had not been easy for a former soldier like him to reach an understanding with those he had fought.
On the lawn of the White House, the Israeli leader declared: “We who fought against you, the Palestinians, say to you today in a loud and clear voice: ‘Enough blood and tears! Enough !” »
Two years later, he was assassinated by a Jewish religious extremist.
The position of La Presse
The planet must condemn the atrocious actions which raise fears of an escalation of violence in Israel. But sooner or later, it will also have to mobilize to find a peaceful solution.