Peace once again at risk
Glick, an activist who belongs to the Temple Mount Faithful group. Although Glick survived the assassination attempt, the Israeli government decided to respond in kind. A Palestinian young man — who was suspected of having attempted to kill Glick — was shot dead.
Since the end of the latest round of war in Gaza, tensions between the Palestinians and the Israelis have been brewing. Now the attempted assassination and the killing of a Palestinians could push the tensions to a new level.
Perhaps, Netanyahu should make efforts in clipping the wings of this group whose agenda is risky for both the Palestinians and the Israelis.
Unfortunately, thus far, Netanyahu is not in touch with reality. He thinks too much about next elections and therefore he is reluctant on checking this movement. Instead of criticizing those who try to set Jerusalem alight, he ordered on Thursday the first full closure of the Al-Aqsa Mosque compound in a decade and a half, a move that President Abbas denounced as an act of war.
For Arabs and Muslims, the Israeli decision to close the compound was a further provocation that reflects Netanyahu’s insensitivity to the feelings of not only Palestinians but also the Arabs and the Muslims all over the world. Israelis argue that the closure was just for a day and meant to defuse the growing tensions. Yet, the decision sent a different annoying message: Israelis can close the Al-Aqsa compound! Not surprisingly, the Israeli government has used various pretexts to take unilateral moves in Jerusalem.
Once again, an Israeli prime minister subordinates the need to create peaceful climate to his quest for political survival. As happened with Shamir in the past, the radical political and religious forces force Netanyahu to take them seriously. If Netanyahu turns against them, he will run the risk of undermining his chances for making a coalition with right-wing forces. In other words, Netanyahu is concentrating on the next elections and the need to win the support of this right- wing constituency. What Netanyahu does not want to see is that the hesitancy of dealing with this movement and the collusion with this segment of the Israeli society may trigger another unnecessary clash with the Palestinians.