- Wednesday 19 June 2013
- My Account
- Logout
- Register
- Login
Wednesday 12 October 2011
Donald Macintyre: Whatever else happens, this represents a massive shake-up in the conflict
The prisoner swap foreshadowed in the deal approved by Israel's Cabinet last night is a huge shake of the kaleidoscope through which the Israeli-Palestinian conflict has long been viewed. For the majority of Israelis, including the parents of Gilad Shalit, the return of the young soldier after his five-year ordeal will be a cause of unalloyed celebration. So too – assuming the deal is realised as proposed – will it be for hundreds of families of Palestinian prisoners. But in terms of raw politics, its effect will be no less dramatic.
Benjamin Netanyahu observed last night that there had been an "inherent tension between the desire to return an abducted soldier and the maintaining of Israel's security". This was a barely-veiled acknowledgement that for a significant portion of Israel's political hard right, including in his own party, the release of so many political prisoners was too high a price even for the freeing of a young conscript, one most Israeli parents are well aware might have been their own son or daughter.
The fact remains that Mr Netanyahu has succeeded in doing what his predecessor, Ehud Olmert, on whose watch the soldier was taken, failed to do. It is too early to say the release of Gilad Shalit, assuming it goes ahead without another hitch, will win Mr Netanyahu the next election. But it can hardly fail to strengthen a politician who had been beset by increasingly impatient criticism abroad and a welter of social protest at home.
There are deep ironies in the fact that a right wing Israeli Prime Minister whose government reacted with outrage to an entirely peaceful approach to the UN by the moderate Palestinian President, Mahmoud Abbas, has now concluded such a deal with a faction it has long condemned as no more than a terrorist organisation.
Many in Fatah will be angered that Hamas's violent seizure of Sgt Shalit has been rewarded with the kind of large scale, heavy-duty prisoner releases that Mr Abbas was unable to secure through peaceful negotiations. All the more so if the freed prisoners do not include Marwan Barghouti, long one of Fatah's most charismatic figures.
The accord between Israel and Hamas could presage others, perhaps a durable ceasefire in Hamas-controlled Gaza and perhaps the further easing of the long siege of the territory. For that and many other reasons, including the human ones, the deal is welcome. The paradox is that, in the short term, the political beneficiaries are likely to be one of the most right wing governments in Israel's history and an Islamic faction it has long regarded as one of its greatest enemies.
-
Is their marriage our business? No. But Charles Saatchi's row with Nigella Lawson is definitely news
Simon Kelner -
Russell Brand lets loose on MSNBC hosts in promo interview for Messiah Complex tour
-
We never knew Nigella Lawson - and we still don’t
Ellen E Jones -
The Daily Cartoon
-
Should we intervene? Our response to the Charles Saatchi and Nigella Lawson assault is shocking too
Stig Abell
Get your summer started with British Military Fitness
BMF is the UK’s biggest and best loved outdoor fitness classes
How will you make today delicious?
Tell us how you plan to make today delicious and you could win a £50 M&S gift card.
Learn a new language
Add another string to your bow with Rosetta Stone, whether it's Spanish, Italian or Mandarin...
Making reading fun for kids
Nook is donating eReaders to volunteers at high-need schools and participating in exclusive events throughout the campaign.
Introducing the 'Get Reading' campaign
Get the latest on The Evening Standard's campaign to get London's children reading.
Enter the latest Independent competitions
Win anything from gadgets to five-star holidays on our competitions and offers page.
Business videos from commercial thought leaders
Watch the best in the business world give their insights into the world of business.
Donald Macintyre
Get the best in opinion from Independent Voices, straight to your inbox every Thursday lunchtime.
Subscribe
Amol Rajan
A weekly update from the Editor
iJobs General
Ambitous PR Account Manager for Top London Agency!
£30000 - £35000 per annum: May & Stephens Recruitment Group: If you're an ambi...
PR Account Director - Top Healthcare Communications Agency
£43000 - £50000 per annum + £5K Car Allowance + Bens : May & Stephens Recrui...
PR Account Executive & Social Media Guru-Top Tech PR Agency!
£18000 - £22000 per annum + Bens : May & Stephens Recruitment Group: If you're...
Telesales Executive
£16000 - £23000 per annum + OTE £23k - £45k: Connex Education: Connex Educatio...
Day In a Page
First night: The Cripple of Inishmaan
Scandi-geeks descend on Nordicana for fan-convention
Female aristocrats battle to inherit the title


