US Secretary of State John Kerry warned yesterday about the consequences of any collapse of the Palestinian Authority, saying it would be a threat to Israel.
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He said that Israel would have to shoulder some of responsibility, such as providing basic services in the West Bank, if the Palestinian Authority collapsed.
Kerry called on leaders at the Saban Forum in Washington, D.C., to work harder to end violence in the region and renew commitments on both sides to a two-state solution to the Israeli-Palestinian conflict. He said such an event would lead to a situation that would threaten the security of both Israel and the Palestinian people.
“A Palestinian rammed his vehicle at IDF soldiers” near the West Bank Jewish settlement of Ofra north of Ramallah, an army statement said.
Palestine President Mahmoud Abbas has said the recent eruption of violence in Jerusalem and West Bank is a “reaction to the violence and atrocities committed by Israeli security forces and settlers” against Palestinians.
He also lamented that Israeli settlements were expanding further into areas Palestinians considered part of a future state while denying permits for Palestinian projects in territories that would be negotiated over as part of an eventual peace agreement. Without a two-state solution, Kerry said Israel would be forced into an unsustainable position of perpetual occupation that would be rejected not least by the Palestinian but by most, if not all, of the worldwide community.
He noted that during a recent trip to Ramallah, Abbas had told him that the level of Palestinian despair about the future was unprecedented. “Without the Palestinian Authority, Israel will be responsible for civil administration of the West Bank – it costs billions. Enough is enough – we need to do it”, Lapid added.
“Many of those arguing for the dissolution of the PA simply don’t believe in two states”, Kerry complained. Additionally, some Israeli cabinet members have spoken out in opposition to a Palestinian state. We can’t come to a forum like this, we can’t have meetings under the norms of diplomacy and pretend.
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“The one-state solution is no solution is at all for a secure, Jewish, democratic Israel living in peace, it is simply not a viable option”, Kerry said. “Would there be different laws applied in the Palestinian enclaves? They are people who really live in the hills, disconnected from their close families”.
