Israelis go to the polls next Tuesday in a general election that will undoubtedly affect the prospects of peace in the Middle East. The current political landscape in Israel suggests that a right-wing majority will likely come into power. This could further inflame tensions in the region.
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But is it fair to say that Israelis are becoming more hawkish in their views of how the Palestinians should be handled?
Ambassador Phillip Wilcox thinks it is. Ambassador Wilcox, a former US Consul General who was stationed in Jerusalem, is currently Adjunct Scholar at the Middle East Institute in Washington D.C.
In an interview with Radio Netherlands, he said that Israelis are hardening their policies towards the Palestinians.
According to Ambassador Wilcox, the continued violence of the past eight years and the collapse of the Oslo Accords have eroded optimism within Israel that peace can be brokered via dialogue:
"[The experience of the past years] has created a sense of disillusionment among many Israelis that peace is possible. It has weakened the influence of the centrist and left wing parties which are disposed to peace and compromise and strengthened the hawkish element in Israel."
No reconciliation efforts
Ambassador Wilcox believes that the average Israeli is far less inclined to see compromise with militant Palestinians as a viable option. And while it is clear that actions by Hamas have placed peace farther out of reach, Mr Wilcox says that Israel has also resisted taking the steps necessary to reconcile with Palestinians.
"A right wing government will increase the level of hopelessness and despair among the Palestinian people and the radical impulse to use violence."
The biggest obstacle to peace
There is no doubt that both Israelis and Palestinians have contributed to the difficulties in concluding a peace agreement. But according to Ambassador Wilcox, the biggest obstacle on the road to peace is the unconditional support that Israel receives from the United States government. Wilcox hopes that the new American leadership could lead to a new approach:
"The United States, for many years, has not used the full weight of its moral and political influence as an intermediary, and it is just possible that the Obama administration is going to work much harder to turn this tragedy around."
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Israel's political landscape |
| Pre-election polls put the Likud party, led by Former Prime Minister Benjamin Netenyahu, ahead of their main rivals, Kadima and the Labor party, Avoda. Likud is a centre-right party that espouses hawkish policies to address the problem of Palestinian militancy. Benjamin Netenyahu is favored to assume his former post of Prime Minister once more.
Running a close second in the polls is Kadima, a party led by current Minister of Foreign Affairs Tzipi Livni. Kadima is also a center-right party but is situated to the left of Likud, on the political spectrum. Nevertheless, during the recent three-week war in Gaza, Kadima demonstrated their readiness to take a hard-line with the Palestinians. The Israeli Labor Party - a centre-left political movement - is social-democratic and Zionist in nature. Its leader Ehud Barak, is the current Israeli Defense Minister. He saw his popularity, within Israel, skyrocket during the offensive in Gaza. Yisrael Beiteinu is a relatively new, radical right-wing movement that has recently garnered significant support from Israelis. The party's ultra nationalist platform endorses efforts to reduce the number of Israeli Arabs by redrawing the borders with any future Palestinian state and increasing Jewish immigration to Israel. Yisrael Beiteinu is led by its founder, Russian immigrant, Avigdor Lieberman. Polling indicates that this party may make huge gains in the upcoming election. Finally, Meretz is a left-wing party led by former Minister of Agriculture Haim Oron. Meretz favours compromising with Palestinian factions and ending the spread of Israeli settlements. The party has declined in popularity over the past decade and is not expected to secure many parliamentary seats in the election. |
Tags: ehud barak, election, gaza, hamas, israel, kadima, likud, livni, meretz, netanyahu, palestine