Haaretz
Adar2 18, 5765
On April 11, Ariel Sharon will go to a victory
party at U.S. President George W. Bush's ranch in Crawford, Texas. There
is nothing politicians enjoy more than to gloat, and Sharon has a lot of
reasons for celebrating his victory over the "rebels" who tried to stop
his disengagement plan and failed; his victory over the doubters who
eulogized his reign over and over; his victory over the left, which once
haunted him and now organizes demonstrations in his honor; his victory
over Tommy Lapid, who tried to leverage his political power and crashed
twice.
But more than anything in Texas, Sharon will celebrate the
victory of the bulldozer. At the heart of his conversation with the
president will be strengthening the understandings regarding Israel
preserving for itself the settlement blocs in the West Bank. Bush already
accepted the principle last year. Now Sharon wants to make sure the
American promise for an annexation of the blocs in the future is turned
into permission to build, in exchange for the evacuation of settlers from
Gaza and northern Samaria.
Sharon is sacrificing Gush Katif and
risking domestic strife to achieve two goals: strengthening his power at
home with the promise to "quit" the hated Gaza, and setting Israel's
eastern border on the ridge lines that will expand the "narrow waist"
around the Dan region and Jerusalem.
Sharon grew up in the era of
the British mandate, and was educated on the "dunam after dunam"
principles of practical Zionism. Ideology and sublime ideas never
interested him, and even now he finds them difficult to understand and has
contempt for them. For him, only power matters. What good is all Lapid's
anti-religious preaching, if he folds and supports the budget at the
moment of truth? The same holds true in the territories. Those who control
the hill will win and dictate the future border.
Two years ago,
Sharon updated the goals of the war with the Palestinians. His demand that
they surrender unconditionally was replaced with a policy of strengthening
the "blocs" and preparing for their annexation to Israel: Ma'aleh Adumim,
Ariel, Gush Etzion, Beit Arye. Ever since, Sharon has aimed unswervingly
for that goal, with the planning of the fence, the construction permits
and the land takeovers. He was correct in his assessment that if he
promises to evacuate a few isolated settlements, the world will forgive
his construction in the blocs. Sharon blames the latest dispute with
Washington about the planned construction between Ma'aleh Adumim and
Jerusalem on incautious chatter in Jerusalem.
Bush's letter from
April 2004, which the administration reaffirmed over the weekend, shows
that America is not interested in the abstract justice of the
International Court in The Hague or the cries of the occupied
Palestinians. Recognition of the "new realities on the ground" is the
great victory of force, proof that Jewish settlement does set the border.
It's all a matter of proportionality. If Gush Katif had 200,000 Jews, and
not 7,000, nobody would be talking about evacuation. If they had built
high rises there, like in Ma'aleh Adumim, and not greenhouses and villas,
the map would be different.
Sharon's settlement bloc policies
struck a profound chord in the center of the political map in Israel.
Except for Peace Now and some shouters on the left, everyone is in love
with Ma'aleh Adumim and Ariel. Ehud Barak, who wants to run against
Sharon, is flanking him on the right and warning against losing the blocs
because of too much of an appetite. Shimon Peres was furious about the
"timing" of the announcement of new construction at Ma'aleh Adumim, but
not about the principle. The coming elections, therefore, will be over who
will better protect and preserve Ariel and Beit Arye.
Those who
thought Sharon had turned into a leftist and began worrying about "the
rights of the Palestinians" were very wrong. Sharon still believes the
bulldozer and the housing units will set the border, with America's
support and backing. The upcoming meeting in Crawford is meant to grant
him further strength.