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Fri, Sept 17, 2010 | Ma’an News Agency

The Arab League Refuses to Recognize Israel as a Jewish State

While negotiations on a future peace agreement between Israel and the Palestinians have just been resumed, the Arab League draws a line in support of the Palestinian decision not to recognize a Jewish State. As a consequence, the members of the Arab League will also not recognize Israel as a Jewish state, not now and not in the future.

The Arab foreign ministers held a meeting in Cairo on Thursday and decided to reject a demand made by Israel, asking Palestinian negotiators to recognize Israel as a Jewish state, according to Ma’an News Agency (Fri, Sept 17, 2010).

“In a statement issued after the meeting, the Arab League supported President Mahmoud Abbas’ refusal to recognize Israel as a Jewish state. Palestinian negotiators have recognized Israel’s right to exist, but not as a Jewish state, which officials say would prejudice the right of return for refugees and violate the rights of Israel’s non-Jewish residents. (Ma’an News Agency)”

Earlier, Palestinian official and member of the Palestinian Negotiating Team, Dr Nabeel Shaath said that

“The Palestinian National Authority will never recognise that Israel is the national state for Jewish people, as such recognition will directly threaten the Muslim and Christian Palestinians in Israel, and will prevent the Palestinian refugees who left their homes and towns decades ago, from the right to return…” (crethiplethi, Sept 14, 2010).

Israeli Prime Minister Benyamin Netanyahu has made it clear in his remarks at the White House (sept 01)  that

“Just as you expect us to be ready to recognize a Palestinian state as the nation-state of the Palestinian people, we expect you to be prepared to recognize Israel as the nation-state of the Jewish people. There are more than a million non-Jews living in Israel, the nation-state of the Jewish people, who have full civil rights. There is no contradiction between a nation-state that guarantees the national rights of the majority and guaranteeing the civil rights, the full civil equality, of the minority.” (crethiplethi, sept 02, 2010).

“If we are asked to recognize a Palestinian state, it is both natural and appropriate that the Palestinians recognize the state of the Israeli people as a Jewish state,” Netanyahu said at the start of Israel’s weekly Cabinet meeting. (crethiplethi, sept 07, 2010).

Following the meeting of the Arab League, Secretary General Amr Moussa said Israeli-Palestinian peace talks could not continue if Israel did not stop building settlements in the occupied Palestinian territories, according to Ma’an News Agency.

“Palestinian negotiators have said they would walk out of talks if Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu did not extend a ban restricting settlement construction, due to expire later at the end of September.”

The talks have just started, but as Netanyahu hopes for a peace agreement, he also needs the sense of realism and reality, namely the inability of the Palestinians to make peace with and accept a Jewish state.