Plan rejected

In quick succession, two large international bodies have rejected the Middle-East ‘peace plan’ proposed by US President Donald Trump, and accepted by Israeli Prime Minister Netanyahu. First, the 57-member Organization of Islamic Cooperation (OIC) met in Jeddah on the request of its Palestinian representative. The OIC has categorically rejected the plan and has called on all member states not to “cooperate with the US administration in implementing it in any form”. Earlier, the Arab League had also rejected the so-called ‘deal of the century’. Both the Arab league and the OIC have rightly asserted that the plan does not meet the minimum rights and aspirations of the Palestinian people. In a related development, the European Union has also rejected parts of the new US peace plan.

The EU says that the plan breaks with the internationally agreed parameters and that any Israeli annexation of Palestinian land would be subject to challenge. The EU took this stance not in a hurry but after due deliberations, displaying a sagacious approach to the US proposals that would give Israel nearly unbridled sway over the occupied lands in Palestine and Golan Heights of Syria. The EU foreign policy chief clarified that a just and lasting peace cannot be achieved unless the final-status issues are decided through direct negotiations between both parties. The EU has reaffirmed its commitment that the borders of a Palestinian state and the final status of Jerusalem are still disputed. The almost unanimous stand by the Arab League, the European Union and the OIC are steps in the right direction.

The proposed plan did not have any input, let alone active participation, from any of the Palestinian representatives. That three Muslim countries – Jordan, Oman, and the UAE – had decided to send their ambassadors to the event where the plan was unveiled had caused some apprehension within the OIC. But now nearly all Muslim countries appear to be united in rejecting the plan. The EU decision to not accept the plan in its entirety is a boost to the Palestinian people who have suffered a lot during the past 70 years. For many, the two-state solution to this problem is perhaps the best option, provided the Palestinian people are involved in negotiations, and Israel is ready to give up its occupation of Palestinian and Syrian land including the Golan Heights and Jerusalem.