It is difficult to exaggerate the nasty role of the Soviet Union but suspicion of the Soviets had nothing to do with Israeli settlement in the West Bank. Despite the ridiculously casual way the fool Dayan gave away Jerusalem the more thoughtful Israeli leaders understood several things: while Arabs had an absolute right to live in Palestine, they had no right to sovereignty. They had a right to be there which was equal to that of the Jews but the West Bank as it came be known only after 1967 was part of the Mandate. The Allon Plan formulated in 1968 I believe called for extensive Israeli settlements on the hilltops of the Judean hills, settlements on the aquifers under the Hills and complete control of the Jordan Valley. And that is what happened. Religious fanaticism had nothing to do with this. This is what is called securing the land. It is why the idea of a two state solution is not workable. |
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