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Benyamin Elon is a Member of Knesset from the National Union Party.
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By Benyamin Elon
November 22, 2007
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Ehud Olmert recently tried to explain to me that in his position as Prime Minister, there are pressures and demands put upon him that the public could not possibly understand.
In an attempt to justify his actions leading up to the Annapolis conference, he said that pressure from America forced him to make concessions. Despite this excuse, America cannot be blamed for Israel's mistakes in pursuing a failed policy for peace.
Rabin, Beilin and Peres facilitated the Oslo nightmare. Similarly, America cannot be blamed for the disengagement. When Ariel Sharon proposed unilateral withdrawal from Gaza, President Bush was disappointed. He had made it clear that there would be no concessions on Israel?s part until there was a complete cessation of terrorism. Had the idea of disengagement come from the mouth of Mahmoud Abbas, President Bush and the world would never have considered it, but it came from the mouth of the Prime Minister of Israel. The Annapolis conference is merely Oslo and Camp David recycled. It is the same dangerous mistakes repackaged.
I explained to Olmert that this conference will cost Israel dearly but he did not heed my warnings. Israeli Military Intelligence later confirmed the danger. I presented Prime Minister Olmert with my peace plan, the Israeli Initiative, as an alternative to the Annapolis conference. I only pray that he reads and considers it seriously.
I am afraid that blame for Israel's problems is being unfairly assigned to America and to President Bush. We cannot expect President George W. Bush to be more catholic than the Pope when the Pope is my Jewish Prime Minister. President Bush is such a close friend to the State of Israel. He is a man who takes inspiration from the Bible and who is willing to stand up and do what is right even when it does not jive with popular opinion. George Bush was the leader during one of America?s darkest hours and he saw then that the threat of radical Islam against the free world is a battle between good and evil. I am sad to say that Israel did not stand up then and proclaim that we are fighting the same battle. Instead we allowed the world and even our own leaders to paint a narrow view of an Israeli- Palestinian conflict rather than exposing the big picture. The truth is that radical Islam is attempting to destroy Israel as part of a greater plan to control the entire Middle East and eventually the world.
Last week I was in Washington D.C. where I met with several distinguished members of Congress from both sides of the isle. I presented them with the Israeli Initiative. Many of them endorsed the plan as the only feasible solution and the only way to bring peace to this region. Unfortunately, many of these endorsements were followed with a note of warning that no American politician can be expected to go against the leadership of Israel.
Today is the American holiday of Thanksgiving. I am thankful for the miracle of the existence of a Jewish state, for our freedom and for all that G-d has blessed us with. I am also thankful to America, a nation that has shown great mercy to the Jewish people and to the Jewish State. Jews begin each day by saying the prayer Modei Ani. Modei means to admit, and also it means to be thankful. I would like to say "Happy Holidays" to my American friends. I apologize to the US for the failure of Israel?s leadership and I pray that this year will be one in which we can look at the conflict honestly and pursue a real solution.
You can read my peace plan at: www.israelinitiative.com
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