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Dr. Aaron Lerner is co-founder of , 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.
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By Dr. Aaron Lerner
September 29, 2006
The absence of a clear and coherent interpretation of the current situation serves to seriously handicap the Government of Israel's PR efforts.
And in many respects, this is self imposed.
What is Israel's take on Egypt's role in Israeli-Palestinian relations?
The photo-op answer is that we welcome the "positive contributions" of our Egyptian "partners in peace" with the spin that "Egypt's policy is driven by the concern it shares with Israel's over radical groups that threaten stability."
The truth is that we are concerned that Egypt's operative policy vis-a-vis the Palestinians is to facilitate an ongoing low grade Palestinian war of attrition against Israel. This is illustrated by Egypt's intensive efforts to preserve the various illegal radical armed Palestinian militias as
well as the massive flow of weapons from Egypt to the Gaza Strip.
What about Mahmoud Abbas?
The photo-op assessment is that he is a "moderate" and a "man of peace".
Yet in truth, "moderation" is a tactical choice for Abbas rather than a commitment. Radical action is wrong only to the extent that it is ineffectual. "Moderate" Abbas embraced the "promising" and "moderate" Prisoners' Document that mandates the murder of Jews in Jerusalem ("resistance") and Abbas wants to put all armed terrorists on the PA payroll. Abbas has no qualms, noting that all bets are off if the Palestinians don't get every centimeter of land -- and more -- via negotiations.
And the dichotomy between "photo-op" and reality goes on and on.
This isn't a matter of "constructive ambiguity" or diplomatic niceties or even a fervent hope that if the "photo-op" assessment is repeated enough times that maybe reality will somehow catch up with it.
Unfortunately, what really drives this phenomenon is the ruling Government's desire not to provide ammunition to the enemy.
No. Not ammunition to the Arabs.
The "enemy" are Israelis who could potentially use the statements of Israeli officials as ammunition against Government policy.
This is nothing new.
From the day Rabin embraced Oslo up through to the Olmert administration today, there has been a struggle in every administration between those who felt that the truth had to be told and the leadership who wanted to keep its options open.
Sometimes it has reached the point of absurdity.
At a particularly severe low point in Israeli-Palestinian relations, the Barak Government's public affairs coordinator, Nachman Shai, released a "white book" on 20 November 2000 detailing Palestinian Oslo violations.
While the publication was distributed by the Government of Israel at an official meeting with the press, there was no identifying marking on it indicating the source of the publication, the author, or that the Government of Israel was in any way associated with the publication. The publication was quickly pulled from distribution as Barak tried to make more "progress"
with the Palestinians.
Does Israel need a bigger PR budget? Yes.
But just as with an exorbitantly expensive sound system, it still very much matters what you play on it.
Views expressed by the author do not
necessarily reflect those of israelinsider.
 
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