Why They Don´t Like the Geneva Initiative (Yossi Beilin's would-be accord damages Israel)

Arutz Sheva ^ | 27 October 2003

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Why They Don´t Like the Geneva Initiative
11:44 Oct 27, '03 / 1 Cheshvan 5764

Dr. Aaron Lerner of IMRA has studied the Geneva initiative in depth, has interviewed several of its promoters, and has found many points that are likely to prove harmful to Israeli interests.

Dr. Aaron Lerner of IMRA ("www.imra.org.il") has studied the Geneva initiative in depth and has interviewed several of its promoters. He spoke with Tzvia Greenfield, for instance, whom he described as "an ultra-orthodox public figure active in support of withdrawal... [who] has been interviewing with the media as part of the promotion campaign for Yossi Beilin's 'Geneva Initiative' [and] has benefited from funding from the European Union in the past."

Although Greenfield told Israel Radio in a public interview that the agreement guarantees Jews' right to pray on the Temple Mount, she was unable to argue with Lerner when he said that this was not perfectly accurate. "The agreement says 'access' with regards to holy places," Lerner said. "The only reference in the agreement to the right to worship is in the Western Wall Tunnel. In the Oslo agreement, the terms 'right to worship' and 'religious practices' appear, while in this agreement the term 'access' is used."

Lerner also noted that "Article 6 Paragraph 5(b)iii [states that] the Waqf will determine what may 'disrupt religious worship decorum on the site' - and since the Waqf has the authority to determine what may disrupt religious worship decorum, and since, as you know, the Waqf believes that Jewish prayer on the Temple Mount is blasphemy, it follows that they will bar Jewish prayer on the Temple Mount on the grounds that it disrupts decorum."

Lerner notes other aspects of the Geneva agreement that are potentially harmful to Israel, including: * Supervision to prevent the smuggling of weapons may remain in force for only five years. * An Israeli military presence, under the supervision of an international force, may remain in the Jordan Valley for only 5.5 years. * Israel is to begin withdrawing from Yesha immediately, while no time element is associated with the disbanding of Palestinian terror forces. * No mention is made of the collection and removal of illegal weapons within the PA. * Israel is barred from patrolling the airspace over Judea and Samaria, only a few kilometers from Ben-Gurion International Airport. * Israel is to pay a lump sum covering the aggregate value of "Palestinians' property at the time of displacement" to be determined by a third party. * A permanent corridor linking Judea/Samaria and Gaza Strip will be under joint Israeli sovereignty and "Palestinian administration." Israel cannot unilaterally shut down the corridor if the Palestinians abuse it. * Israel forfeits its sovereign right to carry out defensive operations within the PA area when necessary. * All disputes between Israel and the PA state are ultimately subject to imposed third party arbitration. * Israel is not guaranteed the use of certain roads passing inside the PA state, such as those from Jerusalem to Tiberias via the Jordan Valley and from Jerusalem to Ein Gedi. Instead, "Israelis may be granted permits for use of designated roads."

Other problematic features of the agreement include: * The new borders between Israel and the PA state will be based on the June 4th 1967 lines "with reciprocal modifications on a 1:1 basis" - meaning that Israel will give up sovereign territory. * Existing arrangements regarding the Jewish residents in the territories to be given to the PA, including security, shall remain in force only "until the date prescribed in the timetable for the completion of the evacuation of the relevant settlement." * Similarly, "Israel shall keep intact the immovable property, infrastructure and facilities in Israeli settlements to be transferred to Palestinian sovereignty," with an agreed inventory to be drawn up beforehand. "The state of Palestine shall have exclusive title to all land and any buildings, facilities, infrastructure or other property remaining in any of the settlements on the date prescribed in the timetable for the completion of the evacuation of this settlement."