This is an interesting video from 1978 of a 28-year-old Benjamin Netanyahu (then known as Benjamin Nitay because Netanyahu sounded too much like a native American name for US circles) speaking during a televised debate in America.
His words are prescient. He says that a Palestinian state would become a terrorist state that threatened Israel. Fast forward to the 21st century. Israel withdraws from Gaza, Hamas takeover and bombard southern Israel with rockets.
As he says of the Palestinian aims: “What were are talking about here is not the attempt to build a state, but to destroy one.”
(Looking good, Bibi!)
That’s a great video. He’s pretty cool there. Nice outfit too!
More than 30 years later the issues are still the same.
What has changed is that, to a large extent, we (Israelis and our supporters abroad) have assimilated what was, in 1978, the anti-Israel position. In 1978 the anti-Israel position was that of support for a Palestinian Arab state and in favor of Israeli withdrawal. For sixteen years Israeli governments (including those led by the right) have accepted what was once an anti-Israel position to the point where, today, that acceptance is the sin qua non for being taken seriously when discussing this subject.
Where did we go wrong? (Don’t say “Oslo”, because that was more of a symptom than a cause).
His interlocuteur, Mr Ajami, has changed a bit since then though.
According to Edward Said he is: “a man who was once a progressive supporter of the Palestinian struggle who has now converted to the far Right and has espoused Zionism and American imperialism without reservation”.
Oooooooooo he’s so beautiful. Someone is going to be haunting my dreams for some time.
Phwoaarrr!
so…nu? what happened? he lost his hair, he lost his bite?