Israeli Palestinian peace talks had no chance, say analysts Michele Chabin, Special for USA TODAY 1:41 p.m. EDT April 11, 2014 (Photo: Nasser Ishtayeh AP) JERUSALEM — The Palestinian refusal to recognize Israel as a Jewish state is at the core of why a negotiated settlement between the two sides is all but dead, say experts on both sides of the divide. Public sentiment and the positions of political leaders for the Israelis and the Palestinians indicate that neither side will bend on the issue Israel says is critical, which means peace talks pursued by U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry had little chance of working from the start. "After 65 years of Arab rejection and warfare, closure for Israelis can come in the form of acceptance of the legitimacy of the Jewish state, in Palestinian renunciation of refugee claims, or perhaps simply a statement that this is the end of the conflict," says Gerald Steinberg of Bar Ilan University. Israel has in the past offered compromises on hurdles such as settlements on disputed land. But the refusal by Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas to concede that Israel is a Jewish state is a deal-breaker, says Steinberg. The refusal means Israel has no confidence that a Palestinian state on its border will end the decades-long attempt by Arab nations to destroy it, so there is no reason to agree to a two-state solution, he says. Israelis worry that "an agreement will be signed, Israel will give up territory, and the wars, terrorism will continue," Steinberg says. Kerry spent months shuttling between the two sides to broker a deal, and when talks fell apart he blamed both sides for taking steps that hurt progress, citing Israel for refusing to release more Palestinian prisoners, including some involved in terrorism against Israelis, and Palestinians for seeking recognition at international organizations, something they had promised not to do. Palestinian experts say the hurdle of recognizing Israel's right to exist as a Jewish state was always there and Kerry should have recognized it. "Israelis are free to declare that Israel is a Jewish country, but it is unjust to ask the Palestinians to support that narrative," said Basem Ezbidi, a professor at Birzeit University in the West Bank. "We will never get even close to this kind of recognition, and I can't see any decent Palestinian entertaining this idea." A March 20-24 poll by the Palestinian Center for Policy and Survey Research in Ramallah found that a majority of Palestinians in the West Bank and Gaza would reject Kerry's framework for peace talks if it included the topic of whether to recognize Israel as the state of the Jewish people. The majority polled felt that way even if Israel agreed to remove all Israeli towns and cities on the West Bank and carved off East Jerusalem to the Palestinians for the capital of a Palestinian state — which Israel says it will not do. Israel has agreed to remove some of the settlements but make major ones part of Israel by wrapping its border around them. And it says Jerusalem will remain Israel's undivided capital forever. In Senate hearings this week, Kerry refused to "recognize reality" and Sen. John McCain put it and accept that Palestinian refusal to recognize Israel as a Jewish state made a negotiated solution impossible. "We are trying to get something done. I think it's important to do this," Kerry said. "Sure we may fail. You want to dump it on me, I may fail, I do not care. It is worth doing. It is worth the effort." Kerry said the Palestinian Authority should acknowledge that Israel is the homeland of the Jewish people but that, "it's not going to happen" at this stage of the negotiations.
It seems the world still needs to be reminded of the fact that the Palestinains were given land, more land in fact than Israel when the United Nations Partitioned the land between Israel and Palestinians. The Lard the Palestinians were given extended into what is known today as Jordan, but the real issue is that they don't want Israel to have any land. This makes for an ongoing impasse in any Peace Negotiations. But one day this will be resolved, maybe the Four Blood Moons signs will see something happen that will lead to a break through on this crucial issue. | 
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