by Mati Tuchfeld
Wary of the public's wrath, King Abdullah of Jordan is working against his country's interests. Still, his decision should not affect the strategic cooperation that Amman and Jerusalem so highly value.
There
are plenty of reasons that can explain Prime Minister Benjamin
Netanyahu's decision to postpone the controversial eviction and
demolition of the Bedouin village of Khan al-Ahmar, east of Jerusalem.
After all, the international pressure was
unbearable, the European Union was furious, the United Nations was
outraged and Israeli Arabs, already on edge over the nation-state law,
were livid.
Israeli opposition leaders claimed from day
one that the damage this move would cause to Israel far outweighs any
benefits, and rushed to congratulate Netanyahu on his surprising
decision to suspend the demolition.
The fact that the international and
diplomatic arenas dictate internal Israeli moves – some harder to
explain than others – is something we have gotten used to. EU and
global interests rarely coincide with Israel's interest and in most
cases, they are the polar opposite. We have also grown used to the
fact that the Israeli Left adopts international dictates and presents
them as Israeli interests.
The only thing that took us by surprise was
Netanyahu's decision to opt for a policy of incompetence. Because the
simple truth is that the decision to let Khan al-Ahmar stand is the
one doing the real damage to Israel's international image – not the
other way around.
This has made it clear to the world that
the Israeli government's decisions are flimsy and fickle, even when it
comes to the purely internal matter of enforcing a High Court of
Justice ruling. No, even with the High Court's backing, the government
cowers before a handful of and foreign leaders simply because they
crinkled their noses at us.
But this goes beyond inflicting damage to Israel's international image. This simply defies common sense.
There is no real explanation for the
question of why a state cannot easily rebuff those who demand it
refrain from enforcing the law within its own territory,
and Netanyahu's capitulation in this case has undermined Israel's
sovereignty.
It is too early to assess the damage, but
it is likely to prove hard to deal with. Essentially, Netanyahu showed
the world that his word is meaningless and that it is more than
possible to chip away at his façade of strength and determination –
and quite easily so.
It is no secret that Israel is facing
tremendous security challenges at this time. Netanyahu himself reminds
us of that in almost every speech. That is why standing firm,
especially at this time, is nothing short of an existential asset. If
it turns out that this is only a disguise, it would be akin to
sacrificing a strategic asset on the altar of diplomatic and political
distortions.
Netanyahu knows this, which is why he
called a cabinet meeting before announcing his decision – he needed a
buffer from the criticism he knew would follow. But the question about
this incompetent policy remains.
Why is a leader who stood firm vis-à-vis the European Union and the Obama administration on the Iranian issue, locked horns with Russian President Vladimir Putin on Syria and refused to relent to international pressure on so many other issues, now standing so weak and subdued?
The opposition's hypocrisy also cries out
to the heavens. So many poignant words have been spoken in the past
year about the need to preserve and enforce the rule of law. Those who
hailed the rule of law championed the cause of the High Court of
Justice are now welcoming – praising even – a blatant violation of the
law and the trampling of the judiciary.
As it turns out, law and order, too, are
just a matter of politics. After all, none of the critics have ever
sought to reach a compromise with the residents of Judea and Samaria
when their homes are slated for razing on the court's orders. Everyone
would be wise to remember that the next time they complain that the
government is infringing on democracy.
Mati Tuchfeld
Source: http://www.israelhayom.com/opinions/pms-capitulation-undermines-sovereignty-%e2%80%8e/
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