The United States, European Union (EU) and the United Nations (UN) have issued unusually stern criticism of Israel, provoking a sharp response from Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and raising Palestinians’ hopes of steps against their neighbour.
U.N. Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon on Tuesday described Israel’s settlements as “provocative acts” that raised questions about its commitment to a two-state solution, nearly 50 years after occupying lands the Palestinians seek for a State.
Oppressed react by stabbings: Ban
Mr. Ban also laid some of the blame for four months of stabbings and car rammings by Palestinians at Israel’s door, saying “as oppressed peoples have demonstrated throughout the ages, it is human nature to react to occupation, which often serves as a potent incubator of hate and extremism.”
Mr. Netanyahu’s response was quick and furious. Mr. Ban’s remarks “give a tailwind to terrorism,” he said, and ignore the fact “Palestinian murderers do not want to build a state.”
U.N. neutral no longer: Netanyahu
“The U.N. lost its neutrality and moral force a long time ago,” he added, singling Mr. Ban out for personal criticism.
While terse words between Israel and the U.N. are nothing new, Israel’s closest allies, the U.S. and the EU, have publicly expressed their own frustration with the policies of Mr. Netanyahu’s right-wing government.
Shapiro flays, gets it back
Speaking at a security conference last week, U.S. Ambassador to Israel Dan Shapiro questioned how equitably justice was applied in the occupied West Bank, saying: “At times there seem to be two standards of adherence to the rule of law: one for Israelis and another for Palestinians.”
That, too, drew an angry response from Mr. Netanyahu. Mr. Shapiro later said he regretted the timing of his remarks, made on the day an Israeli mother of six, stabbed to death by a Palestinian in a West Bank settlement, was buried.
And Swedish Foreign Minister ‘anti-Semite’
The EU’s policy of labelling products made in Israeli settlements has provoked similar anger from officials, while Sweden’s Foreign Minister was branded an anti-Semite after calling for an independent investigation into Israel’s efforts to quell the current wave of violence.
The criticism — particularly about the settlements where some 5,50,000 Jews live in around 250 communities scattered across the West Bank and East Jerusalem — has raised Palestinian hopes that world powers might finally be minded to support a U.N. resolution condemning Israel’s policy outright.
We will go to Security Council: Palestinian negotiator
“We are continuing our contacts with the international community... and will go to the Security Council for a resolution against the colonial settlement enterprise,” Saeb Erekat, the Palestinians’ chief negotiator, said last week.
The last attempt at such a resolution failed in 2011 after the U.S. vetoed it, saying it harmed the chances for peace. The feeling among Palestinian diplomats now is that the U.S. may be less inclined to veto given the absence of peace talks and the depth of U.S. frustration with Israel.
Israeli diplomats wary
Israeli diplomats are also wary of that possibility. “It’s always a risk and we are extremely attentive to it,” said Emmanuel Nahshon, Foreign Ministry's spokesman.
“There has indeed been a lot of criticism of Israel recently, but I don’t know whether that necessarily translates into a U.N. resolution,” Mr. Nahshon said, adding there had been “anti-Israeli resolutions” at the U.N. in the past, regardless of developments on the ground.
Palestine hopes on France
The Palestinians hope France, a permanent member of the U.N. Security Council, might sponsor such a resolution, but it is unclear whether the French have the appetite for such a course.
“If the French want to play a useful and positive role in the Middle-East, they can’t stand behind an initiative that is against Israel and only antagonises us,” said Mr. Nahshon.
Hillary equation vis-à-vis Israel
Even if a resolution were to be drafted, diplomats played down its prospects. While U.S. President Barack Obama may have a fractious relationship with Mr. Netanyahu, he is unlikely to want to isolate Israel in a U.S. election year, with Democrat candidate Hillary Clinton keen to draw the Jewish vote.
“The logic might seem to be there, but when it comes to it, the United States isn’t going to let such a resolution pass,” said a European diplomat who has worked at the U.N.
