Dr. Aaron Lerner is co-founder of IMRA, Independent Media Review and Analysis, an Israel-based news organization which provides an extensive digest of media, polls and significant interviews and events relating to the Israeli-Arab conflict. imra@netvision.net.il
Keep Jordan out of West Bank security
By Dr. Aaron Lerner
July 6, 2007 Bookmark to del.icio.us
Involving Jordan in West Bank security could undermine effective ongoing Israeli operations in the area, destabilize the Hashemite Kingdom and hurt relations between the Jewish State and Jordan. In the longer run this could mean setting the scene for a confrontation with a different Jordanian regime which has advance position next to Kfar Sava and Netanya.
Yes, it certainly is tempting to try and pass off the Palestinian hot potato to the Jordanians.
But it would be a terrible mistake.
Today the West Bank is within Israel's security envelope and Israeli forces can literally enter pretty much any place at any time. Introduce a Jordanian presence and Israeli security forces would have to bend over backwards to avoid them.
Even if the Jordanians deployed didn't intend it to be the case, armed Palestinian groups could be expected to exploit the Jordanian presence as human shields.
It is a no win situation.
Should the Jordanians try to do a serious job they would be denounced for collaborating with Israel and the King's enemies would move to overthrow him.
No one can predict who will be ruling in Jordan in 2010, let alone a generation from now. Why set the scene for a confrontation which can be avoided in the first place?
But what of the challenge of West Bank security?
That's the irony: all the talk about involving Jordan gives the impression that the current approach is a dismal failure when the opposite is the case.
While no security operations can have zero failures, Israeli security forces enjoy a level of success in the West Bank today well beyond anyone's expectations.
Whatever problems there are can be attributed to a lack of will on the part of Israeli political leaders rather than a lack of ability of Israeli security forces to get the job done.
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