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
Israel faces serious challenges as it prepares for President Bush's upcoming visit to the region.
Although Iran may be on the agenda, Israeli-Palestinian issues can be expected to take the front seat.
While successful surgical strikes in Gaza may be acceptable to the White House, there is growing pressure on Israel to forfeit the Jewish State's need for security measures in order to expedite Palestinian movement within the West Bank.
This was reflected in the latest Quartet statement that "stressed the importance of improved movement and access" for Palestinians without even an allusion to making it subject to Israel's security needs.
Add to this the confusion injected by Secretary of State Rice -- who sees Israel's security measures somewhere between Jim Crow Selma and apartheid Soweto -- and the pressure to come up with Israeli terror-expediting security concessions is tremendous.
Washington's decision to opt to entertain half baked ideas that could indefinitely postpone any serious Egyptian activity to stop the mounting Sinai-Gaza weapons smuggling crises is a further indication that security is taking a back seat to other considerations.
At the same time there is growing support to opt for some kind of international force instead of requiring the development of durable and robust Palestinian security arrangements.
Yes, it is hard to believe that it is actually possible to develop durable and robust Palestinian security arrangements. But that's the point.
Because if they can't be developed then that's certainly enough of a reason to drop the idea of a Palestinian state altogether.
Foreign minister Livni appears to also favor an international force fig leaf. But it's not too late to stop this idiocy before it snowballs out of control.
President Bush's visit could be a platform for either stopping or advancing these dangerous developments.
One certainly hopes that the Olmert team understands this and acts accordingly.
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