A Road Map Through Jordan
By Rachel Neuwirth. Source: IsraelNationalNews.com May 27, 2003.
The creation of a second Arab/Palestinian state, run by the terrorist PLO, will cause a humanitarian crisis and economic disaster for both Jordan and Israel. If we are ever to achieve peace between Israel and the Arabs, we must know history and face reality: the Arab people who live in what is now Israel ? including Judea, Samaria, and Gaza ? and Jordan are one people.
The solution to the Middle East conflict lies in recognizing that 78% of historical Palestine is today called Jordan, and 80% of Jordan?s population is (so-called) Palestinian (maps of historical Palestine can be seen here). The only rational conclusion is that there is already a state for the Palestinian Arabs: the Hashemite Kingdom of Jordan.
* Dr. Kadri Toukan, a former Jordanian foreign minister, declared on December 9, 1970, that Jordan is Palestine and Palestine is Jordan.
* Anwar Nusseibi, a former Jordanian defense minister, stated on October 3, 1970, "The Jordanians are also Palestinians. This is one state; this is one people. The name is not important. The families living in Salt, Irbid, and Karak not only maintain family and matrimonial ties with the families in Nablus and Hebron, they are one people."
* Ahmad Shuqairy, the first chairman of the PLO, told the Palestine National Council in May of 1965 that "Our Jordanian brothers are actually Palestinians."
* Further, the Washington, D.C. website of the Hashemite Kingdom of Jordan says: "The... close historical and geographic relationship between Jordan and Palestine over the ages, together with... the national affiliation and cultural position of Jordanians and Palestinians... have endowed this relationship with a special and distinctive character. It is bolstered by the strong ties and deep common interests that exist between them."
This implies that King Abdullah II of Jordan should have taken responsibility for the plight of his own people: the Arabs who live in Israel and the West Bank. Jordan has 35,000 sq. miles of contiguous land, enough to absorb all the Palestinian Arabs who presently reside in the West Bank.
If President Bush wants to achieve peace, his road map must reflect the fact that the Hashemite Kingdom of Jordan is, essentially, Arab "Palestine".
As recent history has painfully taught us, Israel and Palestinian Arabs can never live peacefully together. Most Palestinian Arabs declare day and night that their goal is to destroy Israel. And many Israeli Arabs living in Israel have proven themselves to be disloyal to the Jewish state. However, since the 1994 peace treaty with Jordan, Israel and Jordan have lived side by side in relative peace. Only two states ? the Jewish "Palestinian" state and Jordan, the Arab "Palestinian" state ? are truly capable of finding a resolution to the so-called Palestinian dispute.
The separation of Arab and Jew is imperative for regional stability. Furthermore, the international funds that currently support the PLO "thugocracy" should be redirected to support Jordanian and Israeli diplomatic efforts toward achieving an equitable solution to the conflict in the Middle East. Jordan, as the Arab "Palestinian" state, should grant citizenship to all Arabs within Israel, including Judea, Samaria, and Gaza. Those who want to locate elsewhere can do so (backed by international financial support, for a limited time). Those who choose to remain in (pre-?67) Israel will be given alien status, with no political rights, since Israel is the Jewish "Palestinian" state. Terrorist organizations, such as Arafat?s Fatah, Hamas, Islamic Jihad, Al-Aqsa Brigades, and their nearly countless offshoots, must all be destroyed.
If we fail to follow through on this solution, Arab terrorism will continue. Any alternative will only perpetuate human tragedy and economic hardship for all.
Rachel Neuwirth is a Los Angeles-based analyst on the board of directors of the West Coast Region of the American Jewish Congress and the chairperson of the organization?s Middle East committee.