JCall, the European Jewish network for Israel and for peace, looks forward to the Israeli Prime Minister’s visit in France and to his meeting with the highest authorities of the state.
Because we are unfailingly committed to the State of Israel and concerned about its future and its security, we feel it is necessary to emphasize that, although the Palestinian question does not seem to be at the forefront of the international agenda, it would be a serious mistake to keep it on hold for much longer.
First, it would be a mistake vis-à-vis Israel’s security, because the continued occupation and the development of settlements, by further feeding the Palestinians’ resentment, will eventually lead to the resumption of violence
It would also be a mistake on the diplomatic front, because the deterioration of Israel’s image on the international stage, as a result of the occupation, leads to an ever-increasing estrangement of Israel’s friends, at the very moment when it most needs allies, especially to deal with the real risk posed by a nuclear Iran.
Finally, it would be a mistake on moral grounds, because the occupation traps the Israeli society and its youth in a never-ending confrontation with another people, thus endangering the values on which the Jewish state was founded.
We therefore wish to add our voices to those of a large number of Israeli citizens, and to those of a large number of friends of Israel in the world, to ask Mr. Netanyahu to take advantage of this visit to revive the peace process with the Palestinian people, according to the “two peoples, two states” principle, the only one which can guarantee the future of Israel and that of the other peoples of the region. We hope that France, whose well-balanced positions regarding the Middle-East we appreciate, will encourage him to go in that direction.
