Alon Pinkas, former Israeli consul-general in the United States says “By not recognizing Israel’s Jewish character, Palestinians exhibit potential irredentist tendencies…their immoral and imprudent rejection of the concept will not affect Israel one way or the other.” (theJC.com)
Evelyn Gordon defends the idea of requiring the Palestinians to call Israel a Jewish state and insists that “it is the Palestinians, not Israel, who have placed its Jewish character on the negotiating table.” (Jerusalem Post)
Isi Leibler says that “if the White House is unable to concede that Israel’s demands”–Netanyahu’s four requirements–are eminently reasonable, then alas there may be substance in the fears … that Obama may be willing to sacrifice Israel in a vain effort to appease the Islamic world.” (Jerusalem Post)
Gerald Steinberg decries “the massive European funding for radical nongovernmental organizations (NGOs) whose activities fuel the conflict.” (Jerusalem Post)
Now it’s Obama’s turn to face the question: Is it better to go step by step in the Middle east, trying to build confidence, or should the US set out what the end plan would look like? (Washington Post)
While Aluf Benn thinks the dispute over the settlement freeze is “a futile controversy …serving only to bolster the status of the administration of President Barack Obama as an honest broker in the eyes of the Palestinians and the Arab states” it also “defers the tough decisions that he [Netanyahu] still must face, and it leaves his coalition stable.” (Ha’aretz)
