A MEMO analysis of the British media coverage of the
US-Israel relationship "crisis"
The British media is slowly waking up to the reality of Israel

Finally it seems that the scales are falling from the eyes of the British media and they are seeing Israel for what it truly is; an out of control, rampaging bully. The British press, with a few notable exceptions, rarely pays any real attention to what is happening on the ground in the Palestine - Israel but it seems that they are finally starting to sit up and take notice. This in itself is an indicator of the magnitude of the current crisis unfolding in that part of the world.

Obama's sole option: cut the aid and withdraw diplomatic support to Israel
Israel's ambassador to the United States, Michael Oren, has said that relations between the two countries have entered their worst crisis for 35 years. When the Israeli government announced a plan to construct 1,600 housing units in the Ramat Shlomo settlement in East Jerusalem on the day of U.S. Vice-President Joe Biden's visit to Israel, the U.S. administration reacted with uncharacteristic anger.  Joe Biden, who was visiting the region in order to restart negotiations between Israel and the Palestinian Authority, condemned the Israeli decision more than once and Secretary of State Hillary Clinton used harsher language, describing the announcement as "insulting" to the United States.  Clinton spoke on the telephone to Netanyahu for forty-five minutes in order to rebuke him, demanding that Israel reverse its decision, commit itself to discussing final-status issues such as Jerusalem and the borders of a Palestinian state in negotiations, and undertake confidence-building steps, such as the release of Palestinian prisoners and an easing of the blockade of Gaza.

Briefing Paper - Mar 2010

The March/April 2010 addition of Foreign Affairs¹ features an article entitled 'Armistice Now' written by the Lafer International Fellow at the Washington Institute for Near East Policy and Middle East Commentator for Channel 2 News in Israel, Ehud Yari. The article's central paradigm asserts that Israel needs to urgently reach a provisional agreement with the Palestinian Authority and establish a Palestinian state within temporary armistice boundaries if it is to salvage the prospect of an increasingly less viable two-state solution. It further argues that the best solution for both parties would be to put aside discussions of final-status or comprehensive peace deals and seek a less ambitious agreement rather than pursue the 'daring shortcuts' and 'giant steps' that have been attempted to date.

Following the 1948 Arab-Israeli War, Palestinians did not exert military control over their territory and as such were not party to an armistice agreement with Israel. However, as Palestinians now have a semblance of control over certain portions of the West Bank and the Gaza Strip, it is proposed that they now enter into such an arrangement along the lines of other Arab-Israeli armistice agreements of 1949. These agreements, proceeding from a UN Security Council resolution, included the drawing of armistice lines as borders and included further provisions such as prisoner exchanges and in some instances, territorial swaps. They also included the stipulation that "no provision of the agreement shall in any way prejudice the rights, claims and position of either party in the ultimate peaceful settlement." Not only did they fail to achieve a lasting peace, but a formal peace treaty with Syria is yet to be secured some 60 years later.

Cameron should be the last to play the "identity" card
With their once substantial lead over the Labour Party now reduced to a bare minimum the last thing the Tories needed was another indicator that it is the party of exclusivists and privileged. If the report from this week's Jewish Chronicle is true, the Tories will suffer more setbacks for two reasons; first, for playing the "identity" card - for which Muslims have been castigated mercilessly in recent weeks - and, second, for openly opposing the conclusions of the UN's Goldstone Report.