Syria Today | No hope for peace

No hope for peace under Netanyahu

Following parliamentary elections in Israel on February 10, Benjamin Netanyahu, leader of the right-wing Likud party, was asked to form a national coalition government by Israel’s President Shimon Peres on February 20. Syria Today hit the streets of Damascus to gauge local reaction to the news and its implications for a Syrian-Israeli peace deal.

Motaseem Rmayd, florist, 22: “Betting on the Israeli government is useless. Peace requires honest intentions, which Israel lacks. Unlike Israel, Syria has always been clear about its position, which is that there can be no peace without the return of the Golan Heights. Unfortunately, Netanyahu has always refused to take the first step towards peace and the return of the Golan. Many people think that Netanyahu will kill Obama’s hopes of bringing peace and stability to the region, just like he killed Clinton’s efforts in the 1990s. I think it all boils down to just how serious the Americans are about playing a peacemaking role in the region.”

Ali Dalati, teacher, 35: “Israeli foreign policy is already set in stone regardless of who the next prime minister is. The only exception was former Prime Minister Yitzhak Rabin, who signed the Oslo accords in 1993, but was assassinated because he wanted peace. History shows us that Israel simply does not want peace.”

Hekmat Nasr, factory worker, 27: “Netanyahu and Lieberman – just think about what these people have done and it’s easy to see that they will never make peace. Look at their history and the crimes they have committed; their hands are drenched in blood. They allow new settlements to be built whilst at the same time talking about giving the land back to their owners. There’s always a contradiction between what they say and what they do. Peace can never be achieved while they are in the game.

Ibrahim Ibrahim, retiree, 65: "The elections have swung in favour of the right, which is bad news for the peace process as a whole. Israel has no leaders who are capable of imposing a peace solution or who want to negotiate seriously. What’s more, Israel’s history shows us that any leader who does want peace will be assassinated. Unfortunately, Israel will not change unless some power imposes peace on it and the Arabs are unable to do this. Only the US can do that."

Mahmoud Goma’a, marketer, 26: “The Israeli settlers and the right-wing camp do not want peace. They want Israel’s so-called land to be empty of Arabs and mosques. Going into negotiations is a tactic, not a strategic decision. Israel does not adhere to any UN Security Council resolutions that are related to Syrian rights. Israel says it wants security, but it certainly doesn’t want peace.”

Abdulkareem Issa, accountant, 22: “Israel has to prove that it wants peace, not Syria. I don’t trust the Israelis because the Arab world has had so many bad experiences with them. Netanyahu did well in the elections by saying that there would be no peace with Syria and the Golan Heights would not be returned. This makes the chances for peace pretty slim.”