The Palestinians are trying the next effort. Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas. Illustrative. Photo Courtesy of UN Photo/Marco Castro
The Palestinian diplomatic army just won’t go away, as they recently announced they plan to go back to the United Nations again to force Israel to withdraw from land they claim. Like a villain in a horror film, they refuse to die and “No” just means “not yet.” It’s the same model used by Palestinian terrorists for decades and it’s bad news for Israel and the US. Something needs to be done, and here’s why:
1. Palestinians will keep trying
Once the main powers among the Palestinians realized terrorism wasn’t achieving their goals, they shifted to aggressive diplomatic attacks. They’ve tried to force Israel’s hand via the powerful UN Security Council twice already, and they’ve tried to circumvent peace talks by getting quasi-statehood recognition from various UN bodies.
Their other angle is to go to the International Criminal Court (ICC) at The Hague – to which they received membership despite the fact that the ICC shouldn’t accept them as members due to their lack of statehood. The US publicly argued that point, an unusually strong move from them.
But persistence will likely pay off for the Palestinians if they face no consequences for that effort. Their first UN Security Council move died before a vote. Their second try got to the voting stage and almost passed. Will their third force a US veto and their fourth try pass? You get the point.
The ICC move also raises the stakes as the Palestinians plan to drag Israel before the court on trumped up charges. Even if those fail, Israel will get awful press and could face sanctions or other pressure by “concerned” nations looking for an excuse to show their displeasure toward Israel.
If two failed attempts won’t stop the Palestinians, but have only made them act bolder, then what will?
The US could (more in a moment on that), and they should because this costs them too.
2. The US is at risk
The Palestinian moves could force the US to use their veto power at the UN. This is harmful because it burns through what’s left of Europe’s goodwill toward America. Reports have shown France has tried to work with the Palestinians to craft a less aggressive UN resolution and the UK doesn’t seem to feel like fighting it any more.
That isolates the US at a time when diplomacy is key: on the global economy, Iran’s nuclear program, fighting ISIS, and battling terror in general. As the US is pitted against its allies over Palestinian nonsense, the positive feelings towards the US will shrink even more and European governments will face pressure from their own people to break ranks with America across the board.
Of course, that’s not nearly as bad as giving the Palestinians what they want. Years of terrorism – including still unresolved fighting – just swept under the rug by handing the Palestinians more land is asking for open season on Israel if the UN moves succeed. A territorial withdrawal would likely lead to a surge of terror in Israel’s heartland.
This would further inspire terrorists to take on the US. Just look at the ISIS phenomenon. A few wins in Iraq has inspired cells in Paris. Momentum is key in the fight with terror. A bloody Israel – handed over to terrorists by cowed Europeans and indifferent Americans – would only increase the extremism around the world.
The ICC move is also bad for America. With the US opposed by anti-Westerners and terrorist-supporters, those nations could be inspired to find ways to try Americans for perceived war crimes as well. The leader of the free world could be a fugitive in this frightening scenario.