Outside-In?

Submitted by Camelinspace (Israel), Jan 22, 2020 at 16:09

Dr. Pipes,

Imagine a secular free Iran. They'd make peace with Israel soon after regime change. And then imagine a free Iraq. One internet poll a year or two ago showed a 50% Iraqi approval rate for peace with Israel. A peace deal with those two regional powers would be a huge strategic win for Israel. Amazingly, it would be a regional peace from the Mediterranean all the way to the Afgan border. Both future powers would need Israeli tech and American assistance to rebuild their countries. Diplomatic agreements with those countries, and maybe also with the Gulf States, would arguably be the regional "vice" that could finally "pop" the Palestinian delusions. The US might be needed to prod a free Iraq not to postpone a peace deal until the Palestinians give up.

So I think one major path to peace may go through Tehran and Baghdad rather than anything Israel and the US can do directly to break Palestinian will. The Palestinians need to see that the formerly antagonistic Shiites (Iraqis and Iranians) have changed their attitude towards Israel in addition to the Gulf shift. Iranian regime change and full Iraqi sovereignty might be the next major events that further cracks Palestinian resolve. And luckily, Sunni anti-Zionists will be powerless to resist such a turn of events. The eastern front is the key. Your thoughts on this would be appreciated.

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