Obama Tells Israel: Go Back To 1967 Bborders

Obama Tells Israel: Go Back To 1967 Borders

How many forum members support Israel? Do you think it's right that Obama asks Israel to give up its land that it acquired in the 1967 Arab-Israeli War? If Israel cedes the land, do you think it will bring peace to the region?



Obama tells Israel: Go back to 1967 borders

May 19, 2011
WASHINGTON – Forcefully stepping into an explosive Middle East debate, President Barack Obama on Thursday endorsed a key Palestinian demand for the borders of its future state and prodded Israel to accept that it can never have a truly peaceful nation based on "permanent occupation."


Obama's urging that a Palestinian state be based on 1967 borders — before the Six Day War in which Israel occupied East Jerusalem, the West Bank and Gaza — was a significant shift in the U.S. approach and seemed certain to anger Israel.


Israel has said an endorsement of the 1967 borders would prejudge negotiations, and Obama took pains to show respect for Israel's views ahead of his meetings Friday with Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu.


The comments came in Obama's most comprehensive response to date to the uprisings sweeping the Arab world. Speaking at the State Department, he called for the first time for the leader of Syria to embrace democracy or move aside, though without specifically demanding his ouster.


As he addressed audiences abroad and at home, Obama sought to leave no doubt that the U.S. stands behind the protesters who have swelled from nation to nation across the Middle East and North Africa, while also trying to convince American viewers that U.S. involvement in unstable countries halfway around the world is in their interest, too.
Obama said the United States has a historic opportunity and the responsibility to support the rights of people clamoring for freedoms, and he called for "a new chapter in American diplomacy."


"We know that our own future is bound to this region by the forces of economics and security; history and faith," the president said. He hailed the killing of al-Qaida terrorist leader Osama bin Laden and declared that bin Laden's vision of destruction was fading even before U.S. forces shot him dead. Obama said the "shouts of human dignity are being heard across the region."


The president noted that two leaders had stepped down — referring to Egypt and Tunisia — and said that "more may follow." He quoted civilian protesters who have pushed for change in Egypt, Libya, Syria and Yemen but noted that among those nations, only Egypt has seen the departure of a long-ruling autocratic leader.


Obama said that while there will be setbacks accompanying progress in political transitions, the movements present a valuable opportunity for the U.S. to show which side it is on. "We have a chance to show that America values the dignity of the street vendor in Tunisia more than the raw power of a dictator," he said, referring to the fruit vendor who killed himself in despair and sparked a chain of events that unleashed uprisings around the Arab world.


On the Israeli-Palestinian peace process, the president cautioned that the recent power-sharing agreement between the mainstream Palestinian faction led by Mahmoud Abbas and the radical Hamas movement that rules Gaza "raises profound and legitimate" security questions for Israel. Netanyahu has refused to deal with a Palestinian government that includes Hamas.


"How can one negotiate with a party that has shown itself unwilling to recognize your right to exist?" Obama asked. "In the weeks and months to come, Palestinian leaders will have to provide a credible answer to that question." Obama also rejected a push by the Palestinians for U.N. recognition of a state in the West Bank, Gaza and East Jerusalem this fall. "Symbolic actions to isolate Israel at the United Nations in September won't create an independent state," Obama said.


The president ignored many of the most divisive issues separating the two sides. He did not speak about the status of Jerusalem or the fate of Palestinian refugees. And, he did not discuss a way to resolve Israel's concerns about a Hamas role in a unified Palestinian government, telling the Palestinians that they would have to address the matter themselves.


On Syria, Obama said President Bashar Assad must lead his country to democracy or "get out of the way," his most direct warning to the leader of a nation embroiled in violence. Obama said the Syrian government "has chosen the path of murder and the mass arrests of its citizens." He praised the Syrian people for their courage in standing up to repression in a bloody crackdown that has killed hundreds.


Obama said that while each country in the region is unique, there are shared values in the push for political change that will define the U.S. approach. "Our message is simple: If you take the risks that reform entails, you will have the full support of the United States," he said The speech was in some ways notable for what Obama did not mention.
While critical of autocracy throughout the Mideast, he failed to mention at the region's largest, richest and arguably most repressive nation, U.S. ally Saudi Arabia. Nor did he discuss Jordan, a staunch U.S. ally that has a peace deal with Israel. Also left out was the United Arab Emirates, the wealthy, pro-American collection of mini-states on the Persian Gulf. And he gave little attention to Iran, where U.S. attempts at outreach have gone nowhere.


Obama announced economic incentives aimed at steering a region roiling in violence toward democratic change that lasts.


Among the elements of his approach:
• The canceling of roughly $1 billion in debt for Egypt. The intention is that money freed from that debt obligation would be swapped toward investments in priority sectors of the Egyptian economy, likely to focus on entrepreneurship and employment for younger people. Unemployment rates are soaring in Egypt and across the region.
• The guaranteeing of up to $1 billion in borrowing for Egypt through the Overseas Private Investment Corporation, a U.S. government institution that mobilizes private capital.
• Promises by the U.S. to launch a new trade partnership in the Middle East and North Africa and to prod world financial institutions to help Egypt and Tunisia.




Obama tells Israel: Go back to 1967 borders - Yahoo! News

 

I have to be honest, I don't really care who does what over there. It would be nice if they could coexist with each other but I personally don't see Hell freezing over anytime soon. Obama or any other U.S. president can say anything they want but the killing will continue because it always has and always will. As long as they are teaching their kids to hate there can only be generation after generation of violence. Obama is good but he ain't that good. I say no matter what we do or don't do, the situation will remain the same.

 

First off, well done! Having posted actual quotes made by the president really helps. I'll try to answer your questions the best I can, but the entire Israel/Palestine issue has been debated for decades, and the area in question has been fought over for thousands of years, any remarks or opinions I have are limited by my understanding of the long-standing conflicts there, and America's part in it.

"How many forum members support Israel?" I would think the question could be answered by most with a simple "Yes" or "No" when asked if they support Israel, but I'm actually finding it difficult to pick one over the other. Do I believe Israel has the right to exist? I'd have to say yes, Israel's peoples have been in that area for thousands of years. But so have the Palestine's peoples. In my view, the entire area might benefit from a consolidated multi-national government (run by non-involved members of the U.N.), leaving neither in charge. But that would be highly unlikely. Israel was founded in what, 1947/48? It seems to me the U.N. overstepped it's rights by creating the country in the first place. So I guess, using those criteria, I can't support Israel as a country, though I agree their peoples should be part of an eventual unified country.

"Do you think it's right that Obama asks Israel to give up its land that it acquired in the 1967 Arab-Israeli War?" America has always been a player in the dispute, and hasn't every president involved themselves in some way? (I might be wrong there though, didn't fact-check) This particular issue has been igniting tensions there ever since Israel claimed the land for themselves. The settlements on the disputed lands have been an ongoing issue as well. I support the presidents position. I believe the president said this to shock Israel back to the negotiation tables... and to let the Palestinian government know he (Obama) wasn't going to be one-sided on the issues. That said, I can understand Israel's reluctance since they are under constant attack.

"If Israel cedes the land, do you think it will bring peace to the region? No, and I doubt there will ever be true peace in that region. There are too many peoples claiming it as their own, each with thousands of years of settlement there.

 

Might be somewhat difficult as the West Bank was prior to its allocation to the British mandate of Palastine (1920 San Remo confrence) was not only part of the Ottoman empire but part of Syria, in 1949 it came under Jordanian rule (they captured and held it) and Jordan did not officially relinquish its claim to the area until 1988, ceding its territorial claims to the PLO and taking West Bank Palestinians Jordanian citizenship away.
It was decided in 1947 by the UN Resolution 181 that the west bank would fall under Arab rule if the 2-state solution within Palestine had gone ahead. (have you ever seen a map of what it would have looked like !! (Stupid is not strong enough)
Israel captured it in 1967

As for the UN overstepping it's authority the Jewish population had been promised a homeland there even earlier under the Balfour declaration in 1917 (which we renaged on add to that we and the French had also been promising things to the diffrent Arab leaders again we renaged on those promises) In 1947 we turned our mandate of Palastine over to the UN and they came up with the partition idea, now The Jewish community agreed to the partition, but Arab countries and Palestinian Arabs did not and on the formation of the State of Israel invaded

 

It certainly is a tangled mess, eh? I say they settle it by having one-on-one, bare-knuckled fist-fights, refereed by Mr T. and Mike Tyson. Match people by weight, class, and beard-lengths. Anyone being a sore-loser gets an ear bitten off by Tyson (some muslim societies do that anyway... and it'll give Mike something to do)... Put it all on CNN, with Wolf Blitzer hosting... Anderson Cooper can report from the ring. Oprah can hand out sheep, goats, and camels to the winners... Martha Stewart can cater... it wouldn't solve the land issues, but it would be entertaining lol

I know! The winner of the fight has to choose a husband/bride from the opponents side... in just one generation they'd have no one but themselves to fight with... that'd work! (laughs) I'll email Obama and suggest it...

 

How many forum members support Israel?
Let me see. Do I support those trying to blow us and the Israelites up or Israel? I will get back to you on that.

Do you think it's right that Obama asks Israel to give up its land that it acquired in the 1967 Arab-Israeli War?
Don't know about right, but it is what he does about it that makes a difference. Hopefully, nothing

If Israel cedes the land, do you think it will bring peace to the region?
Everything the anti-israelites have gotten so far has only brought them to ask for more. Why will this be any different?

 

I asked you a few questions about.some idiotic statements you made about Obama dividing this country. You chose not to answer. So I am guessing you don't have anything to back up your comments. Does that make you a liar? Your freaking right it does. Do you think Israel doesn't want to see Palestine eradicated? Its a mutual hate. Israel is no innocent bystander.

 

Like I said, there is no love lost for either side in this conflict. I would have to believe that the vast majority of Americans feel exactly the same way. This conflict goes back way, way, way further than our country has even existed. It will probably exist long after we are gone. On the other hand, since the world is ending tomorrow, what does any of this really matter?

 

Not realy for most of the time the Arabs and the Jews lived in relative harmony with each other, yes there were outside incursions etc but it was only realy in the 1920's that what we see today began with the Arab revolt caused by rising tensions in Arab-Jewish relations over the increase in Zionist immigration
As for the name Palastine that can be traced back to the Philastines who incidently did not rule the entire area but 5 city states on the coast
Nice map here

File:Kingdoms around Israel 830 map.svg - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

 

Foreign Empires that ruled in Israel

587 BCE Babylonian Destruction of the first Temple.
538-333 BCE Persian Return of the exiled Jews from Babylon and construction of the second Temple (520-515 BCE).
333-63 BCE Hellenistic Conquest of the region by the army of Alexander the Great (333 BCE). The Greeks generally allowed the Jews to run their state. But, during the rule of the king Antiochus IV, the Temple was desecrated. This brought about the revolt of the Maccabees, who established an independent rule. The related events are celebrated during the Hanukah holiday.
63 BCE-313 CE Roman The Roman army led by Titus conquered Jerusalem and destroyed the Second Temple at 70 CE. Jewish people were then exiled and dispersed to the Diaspora. In 132, Bar Kokhba organized a revolt against Roman rule, but was killed in a battle in Bethar in Judean Hills. Subsequently the Romans decimated the Jewish community, renamed Jerusalem as Aelia Capitolina and Judea as Palaestina to obliterate Jewish identification with the Land of Israel (the word Palestine, and the Arabic word Filastin originate from this Latin name).

The remaining Jewish community moved to northern towns in the Galilee. Around 200 CE the Sanhedrin was moved to Tsippori (Zippori, Sepphoris). The Head of Sanhedrin, Rabbi Yehuda HaNassi (Judah the Prince), compiled the Jewish oral law, Mishna.
313-636 Byzantine
636-1099 Arab Dome of the Rock was built by Caliph Abd el-Malik on the grounds of the destroyed Jewish Temple.
1099-1291 Crusaders The crusaders came from Europe to capture the Holy Land following an appeal by Pope Urban II, and massacred the non-Christian population. Later Jewish community in Jerusalem expanded by immigration of Jews from Europe.
1291-1516 Mamluk
1516-1918 Ottoman During the reign of Sultan Suleiman the Magnificent (1520-1566) the walls of the Old City of Jerusalem were rebuilt. Population of the Jewish community in Jerusalem increased.
1917-1948 British Great Britain recognized the rights of the Jewish people to establish a "national home in Palestine". Yet they greatly curtailed entry of Jewish refugees into Israel even after World War II. They split Palestine mandate into an Arab state which has become the modern day Jordan, and Israel.

 

I agree with your post but what was BO hoping to accomplish with his comments? It seems he just fanned the flames and got an ally mad at us for nothing.

 

I'm not going to pretend to know what Obama is thinking. Every time I try, he outsmarts me and everyone else. From what I understand the Israeli Prime Minster and he have a pretty chilly relationship already. I have nothing against the Israelis or the Palestinians so I can't say that I care what Obama does regarding their conflict. I just wish that we'd stay out of it. What is our interest there?

 

What BO did was just bizarre. What was he hoping to accomplish? I guess is just proves what a novice he is, huh?

 

IMO, it's about time America stopped believing Israel even deserves our unilateral support. They can be our ally without us having to "look the other way" when they attack other countries or assassinate people. Granted, they live in a tough area geographically and they attack to prevent attacks on themselves, but they don't need us holding their bloody hands the whole time do they?

 

Not a very smart way to treat an ally was it?

 

I happen to agree with quite a lot of this. Folks want to question what type of "ally" we are to Israel? How about this. What type of ally is Israel to the U.S.?
We do seem to just unilaterally support them and get nothing in return except for them giving us headaches.

Blame Obama. Looks to me like he had the ballz to point it out.

 

World peace through war amongst fanatics?

 

One that does not imprison our reporters, blow up out embassies, try to kill our citizens, allows freedom of the press, plot against our country, etc. How interesting it is that they allow criticism of their own actions so they get blamed for the wrongs while the Arabs befoul the world and do not have a free press so they escape so much of the blame.

 

Great points rlm but seriously as "an ally" what have they really done for us?
Have we formally declared war on the Arabs (that befoul the world)? If so, has Israel been there backing us up?

 

Again with the wikipedia... I know, but it does have a lot of useful info

"Some in the United States question the levels of aid and general commitment to Israel, and argue that a US bias toward Israel operates at the expense of improved US relations with various Arab and Muslim governments."

Israel