Palestine attempts UN membership bid, Israel not happy

[Lusankya]

And by "not happy", I mean words that I cannot speak on a Pokemon forum.

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-middle-east-14924778

Senior US and international envoys have begun a fresh round of shuttle diplomacy to try to head off a Palestinian bid for UN membership. US diplomats Dennis Ross and David Hale, as well as EU foreign policy chief Catherine Ashton and Middle-East envoy Tony Blair are in the region to try to revive stalled peace talks.


Palestinians are preparing a bid for UN membership later this month.
Israel has warned of "harsh and grave consequences" if the move goes ahead.


Mr Ross and Mr Hale arrived in Israel on Wednesday and held talks with Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and Defence Minister Ehud Barak, the US State Department said.

They were due to travel to the West Bank on Thursday for talks with Palestinian leader Mahmoud Abbas.


Baroness Ashton also held talks with Mr Netanyahu on Wednesday morning, and announced she was extending her visit for further talks in the evening.
"I hope that in the coming days what we will be able to achieve together will be something that enables the negotiations to start," she said.
Analysts say the 27-member EU could split over the issue of Palestinian statehood if it comes to a vote at the UN, with some states backing the effort and others likely to oppose it.


US Secretary of State Hillary Clinton on Wednesday spoke to Mr Blair - who represents the Quartet of international Middle East negotiators - and to Baroness Ashton, state department spokesman Mark Toner said.


"This is part of our intensive effort here to find a way forward," he added.
The last round of peace talks between Israel and the Palestinians broke down a year ago.


Since then, the Palestinians have launched a campaign to join the UN as a full member state with international recognition based on their 1967 borders with East Jerusalem as a capital.


Israeli Foreign Minister Avigdor Lieberman, speaking on Wednesday, warned of dire consequences if the Palestinians went ahead.
"From the moment they pass a unilateral decision there will be harsh and grave consequences," he said.


"I hope that we shall not come to those harsh and grave consequences, and that common sense will prevail in all decisions taken," he added.
Some hardline Israeli politicians have called for Israel to annex sections of the West Bank if the Palestinians go ahead.

[Teddiursa of the Sky]

I can agree with Israel's discontent, but then again, I can't at the same time.

Both Israel and Palestine are guilty of horrible fighting, so I cannot say either one of them deserve to be in the UN. I do tend to favor the Israelis, mainly because if some crazy stuff in Iran goes down, the Israelis will be the only ones to stop it. But, as I said, they are both guilty of violent atrocities, so neither one of them deserves to put down the other.

[The pokemaster]

All I can really say is that I'm interested to see how this plays out.

[Lord Fedora]

Given that Israel itself was created by UN mandate, literally stealing the land out from under a number of the native Palestinians in order to ensure a state that was both Jewish and democratic, I don't see where they have any room to complain. That said, I would have vehemently opposed the original creation of Israel, and this I have even more reason to oppose. In that case it was just a case of "it's not solely their land anymore and it hasn't been since, at best, the Byzantines and the Arab Caliphates." In this case, while I'm more sympathetic to cries of "it's rightfully our land" because really, it is, it's the Palestinians who live there and if they want to become a sovereign nation they're entitled to it. But, I agree with the President, going over Israel's heads to the UN is just going to stir up more bad blood. The answer needs to come from a peaceful agreement between the two countries (and for the record, I do personally recognize a state of Palestine, absolutely worthless though that recognition may be).

Oh, and before anyone tries to pull a Bachmann and claim that Israel's pre-1967 borders are indefensible, I point you to the Six Day War, in which, with those borders, Israel curbstomped enemies from all sides in the course of six days. Don't even try to tell me they aren't defensible.

[Teddiursa of the Sky]

Originally Posted by Lord Fedora

Oh, and before anyone tries to pull a Bachmann and claim that Israel's pre-1967 borders are indefensible, I point you to the Six Day War, in which, with those borders, Israel curbstomped enemies from all sides in the course of six days. Don't even try to tell me they aren't defensible.

All someone needs to do is watch NCIS. xD

[Assaundrell Yumerai]

I will wait for the results, and I hope Israel could understand.

[Lusankya]

Originally Posted by Assaundrell Yumerai

I will wait for the results, and I hope Israel could understand.

That... is never going to happen. Israel just doesn't care about the Palestinians' welfare at this point.

[Lord Fedora]

Originally Posted by Assaundrell Yumerai

I will wait for the results, and I hope Israel could understand.

In a perfect world Assaundrell. In a perfect world.

[Teddiursa of the Sky]

Originally Posted by Lusankya

That... is never going to happen. Israel just doesn't care about the Palestinians' welfare at this point.

To be honest, I don't think the Palestinians care about the Israelis either. They both need to suck up the fact that one is Muslim and one is Jewish.

[Lusankya]

Originally Posted by Pe2k Voices

To be honest, I don't think the Palestinians care about the Israelis either. They both need to suck up the fact that one is Muslim and one is Jewish.

I rather doubt the Palestinians ever cared much for the welfare of the Israelis. Much of the Arab world was like "meh" after the Holocaust was revealed.

[Lord Fedora]

Originally Posted by Pe2k Voices

To be honest, I don't think the Palestinians care about the Israelis either. They both need to suck up the fact that one is Muslim and one is Jewish.

It's not about religion. Really, the majority of the Israeli and Palestinian populace want a peaceful two state solution and they'd pretty much be cool with each other. The problem is neither side can agree on how to do it.