Peace Index: July 2007 /
By Prof. Ephraim Yaar and Prof. Tamar Hermann
Although a considerable Israeli Jewish minority currently supports an extensive Israeli withdrawal from the West Bank (except for the large settlement blocs), the majority does not support such a move even if it occurs in the framework of a peace agreement with the Palestinians.
Moreover, the majority objected to the recent freeing of the Palestinian prisoners, even though it was aimed at helping Palestinian Authority Chairman Mahmoud Abbas (Abu Mazen) boost his status among the Palestinian public, and an even larger majority opposes any future release of Marwan Barghouti despite the possibility that, if freed, he could strengthen the status of the secular Palestinian leadership.
This position partly stems, apparently, from the Israeli Jewish public’s current lack of hope that negotiations with the PA can lead to peace in the foreseeable future. This also explains the fact that only a minority at present supports the stationing of an international peacekeeping force in the West Bank to enable an extensive Israeli withdrawal. However, the prevailing view is that the involvement of Arab states such as Jordan, Egypt, and Saudi Arabia in peace deliberations would raise the chances of achieving a regional peace accord. At the same time, in the national order of priorities of the Israeli Jewish public, the proportion of those who think Israel’s domestic and governmental problems are the most serious is twice as high as the proportion of those who think so regarding its foreign and security problems.
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Yamit writes
What utter crap.
Ted are you going to let this pass on Israpundit!
The Lebanon War proved this is totally false. A full 100 per cent support for the IDF as it went into Lebanon to take out Hizbullah.
So please explain that Yamit.
The fact that they did not do so is not the fault of the Israeli peoople.
Yamit, for whatever reason which I cannot speculate on, or should not, you are filled with pessimism.
There needs to be a United Front of all of the Patriot Parties in Israel which will organize in every way possible and seek the support of the great Israeli populace to throw out Olmert immediately.
Israpundit must place this at the very front of its work and at the head of its banner.
The issues in Israel are revolutionary issues and we need revolutionaries to lead, not people who spread doom and gloom and inaction all around.
Ted the sad part is that if there were a credible negotiation and if the people here thought it would hold; a majority would support it almost no matter what the territorial price might be. Most Israelis have no ideological or religious affinity to the Land of Israel. The Opposition today is more of a reaction to the failures and terrorism since Oslo. This; Olmert and Peres as well as the hard left fully understand.
BB today in an interview on TV came right out in support of Abbas and strengthening him and is amenable to a 2 state solution under certain conditions, which will be watered down under pressure from the Israeli Left,Media, The US and the World. So except for nuance he is not the answer.Feiglin got crucified on the radio this AM.
The Army may have to stage a coup to stop these nuts but since our army is a bunch of boy scouts and are so politicized I don`t see it happening, as we are not a normal country.
My thought was that with the leftist controlled media, we still are against retreat and with this leftist survey groups not giving us a break, these numbers look good.
This group of researchers are funded by EU, they are extreme leftist here in Israel. Published always in their extreme leftist mouthpiece HaAretz newspaper and internet version. Take their results add at least 10% of those against so called phony peace moves and the picture here becomes more accurate. Peace Index, How about showing WAR INDEX! what a Load of CRAP the EU will fund handsomely any individual or group that can help destroy Israel from within. I would call these Leftist criminal enemy agents and indict them for treason or at least sedition, but if we were to do that another 20% of Isralis` would also fall into same category.
The right here should turn the tables on these fools using their own logic!We should campaign for the release from prison of all Jews in prison convicted of crimes agaist arabs. We should be yelling from the roof tops to let Yigal Amir theone accused and convicted of killing the Lefts Icon of Purity Rabin. Arab Killers of tens and huindreds of Jews should at least be equal to One Jewish killer of a Jew. Then we could have a real PEACE INDEX WITH SOME MEAT ON THE BONE!
Ted
I think this adds up to a revolutionary situation in Israel where this great, wonderful Israeli people, despite the most atrocious leadership, are striving to move forward, throw off the shackles of the past and create a new future. The instincts of the majority are unerring. I find it almost uncanny and very sobering. The leadership is lagging away behind the masses.
“A segmentation of the positions on this question by voting for the Knesset in the most recent elections reveals, not surprisingly, a majority of supporters of a withdrawal among those who voted for Meretz (92 percent), but also among voters for Labor (76 percent), the Pensioners (65 percent) and Kadima (63.5 percent). Conversely, supporters of a withdrawal are only a small minority among voters for Yisrael Beiteinu (29 percent) and Likud (22 percent), and even fewer among voters for the National Religious Party/National Union (19 percent), Shas (6 percent) and United Torah Judaism (0 percent).
There is the Patriot side to Israeli politics and there is the Traitor side. Many present followers among the Traitors can be won over if the correct tactics are used.
Note Meretz and Labour are ahead of the elderly and even Kadima with its roots in Likud.
It suggests that the real axis of reaction in Israel is focussed around Meretz and the Labour bureaucracy.
This emphasises to me that politics in Israel is existential. It is not that living conditions do not matter. They do. But it is no good being in a nice house and dead. That is the issue.
But the Patriots have got to begin to take the ground from under Peres, Peretz and Barak, take away their constituency, by fighting now on a revolutionary socialist programme, where much more time is devoted to the welfare of the common people. You remember the disgust caused during the Lebanon War when Olmert did not care about the plight of the poor evacues from Northern Israel.
Everything about this Poll is positive.
It shows that if a United Front is formed between ther main leaders in the Patriots, and they concentrate on getting their message out to the people, not hiding their differences but explaining them in a comradely manner, then there will be great hope that Olmert can be overthown and Iran (along with the help’ of the Iranian youth) smashed in a revolutionary war carried to the Fascists by the valiant youth of Israel in the IDF.