As Israeli troops violently suppress Palestinian protests, the road forward for the Palestinian struggle is again being seriously discussed.
An article in the December 8 New York Times with a headline “Two State Option, a Mideast Keystone, Is Sent Askew,” begins: “President Trump, in formally recognizing Jerusalem as the capital of Israel on Wednesday, declared that the United States still supported a two-state solution to settle the conflict between the Israelis and Palestinians, provided it was ‘agreed to by both sides.’
“For the first time in his 26 years as a peacemaker, the chief negotiator for the Palestinians did not agree.
“Saeb Erekat, the secretary general of the Palestinian Liberation Organization and a steadfast advocate for a Palestinian state, said in an interview on Thursday that Mr. Trump and Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu of Israel ‘have managed to destroy that hope.’ He embraced a radical shift in the PLO’s goals – to a single state, but with Palestinians enjoying the same civil rights as Israelis, including the vote.”
“‘They’ve left us with no option,’ he said. ‘This is the reality. We live here. Our struggle should focus on one thing: equal rights.’ “
Read the article by Barry Sheppard in the Green Left Weekly.