"Victory" & The 1967 UNSC Resolutions 242 & 338

Submitted by Robert (United States), Nov 7, 2022 at 12:13

For quite some time I have been asking, thanks to generosity of Dr. Daniel Pipes grant of liberty to express my views on his web pages here, what does an Israeli "Victory" entail specifically besides the general description that Palestinians recognize that they have been "defeated" in their (Civil) War; I say "civil war" because the armed dispute in Mandatory Palestine between its (Israeli) Jews and (Palestinian) Arabs never ceased since the inception of the Balfour Declaration and the 1947-1949 War for Israel's Independence.

It is generally claimed that Israel must abide by International Law. That claim, in the first instance, involves 2 clauses expressed in 1967 after the Disputed Territories were liberated primarily from Egypt and Jordan. The United Nations Security Council (not the General Assembly) implemented the terms for peace in its two (s) Resolutions, enumerated respectively 242 & 338.

In the first of these the 2 relevant paragraphs read as follows:

(i) Withdrawal of Israeli armed forces
from territories occupied in the recent conflict;

(ii) Termination of all claims or states of belligerency
and respect for and acknowledgment of the sovereignty,
territorial integrity and political independence
of every State in the area
and their right to live in peace
within secure and recognized boundaries
free from threats or acts of force.

Close scrutiny of the history of the passage of these paragraphs is important. It is to be noted that diplomatic battles ensued to exclude the words "all" or "the" from prefacing the word "territories. Accordingly, one may note that Israel completely withdrew from Gaza, withdrew from Lebanon & Syria, and partially withdrew from the West Bank as a result of the Oslo Accords; regarding Jordan and Egypt, Israel executed peace treaties with both former belligerent states. Thus paragraph (i) has been substantially satisfied or fulfilled.

That leaves only the issue of paragraph (ii). It is clear that the Palestinian Authority is run by a dictator (Abbas) of the Palestinian Authority who has not been re-elected and is the head of an effectively defunct organization incapable of enforce the terms of the resolution; the real political organization is in Gaza, and its expressed "constitutional" aim (expressed in its Charter) is to wipe out Israel off the face of the Earth (with the help of Iran).

Accordingly, as paragraph (ii) is substantially being breached by the Palestinian cohort, Israel should pursue a policy of "Close Settlement" as expressed in the Mandate for Palestine, adopted by the League of Nations, and continued by its Successor, the United Nations. That's the only way I can imagine an Israeli VICTORY. And Bibi, with the government he is about to form within a month, after US (Republican) elections tomorrow, November 8), is the only politician in Israel who can do it.

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