Iran or the Golan

Prime Minister Ehud Olmert's relaxing vacation in the Golan is just bad timing. It serves to fuel the conflict that exists within Israeli society which grapples between staying in the Golan Heights and the need for a peace agreement with Syria.

Truthfully, when the North is brimming with tourists and activities, when Golan wineries are awarded international prizes and when the Golan's communities see renewed vigor, it seems unnecessary and unrealistic to give up the Golan. The Israeli public does not sense directly the extent of the damage caused to our country due to the lack of peace with Syria nor does it understand the hefty price we are paying because of the continued hostilities with Syria.

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A rightist government in disguise

Foreign Minister Tzipi Livni's speech at Harvard University on the policy of settlement expansion points more than anything to the increasing gap between the government's public stance on the matter and the reality on the ground.

If we are judging based on actions, the Israeli government - disguised as a center-left government - is in fact a rightist government that continues to build settlements, which undermines the chances of reaching a political settlement, thereby turning the Israeli-Palestinian conflict into an unsolvable one. Bibi Netanyahu could not have done it better.

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Time is not on our side

At a time when the government of Israel is dragging its feet and essentially dissolving all efforts to reach a permanent agreement with the Palestinians, in international public opinion the idea of the division of the land into two states is becoming irrelevant. In its place is the vision of a bi-national state, which in practice would mean the end of Zionism.

This month, for the fourth year, 'Israel Apartheid Week' will take place in campuses across Canada, Europe and for the first time, in the US. This "week" is dedicated completely to portraying Israel as the South Africa of the 21st century. In the 'Hasbara' framework of Hillel Canada - which acts on campuses across the nation in order to promote Israel's stance and the position of the Jewish people in the student battle between Jews and non-Jews - I had the opportunity to attend Apartheid Week. I tried to pass on to the students an image of Israel other than the one associated with the conflict.

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Now is not the time to punish Olmert

In a respectful, official and honest manner, without bold statements and dramatic speeches, Ehud Barak announced that despite the political temptation to oust Olmert and present himself a political alternative, he was choosing to stay in the government for the good of the country and to achieve personal goals.

There are no objections to the fact that in the short-term, the option to dissolve the coalition is the best possible scenario Barak could face; crushing Kadima, fulfilling his promise to go to elections and displaying responsibility and moral values which would have played to his advantage mere hours after he would have announced his resignation from the government.

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Lieberman - a strategic threat

At the end of March 2006, Israel's citizens voted unambiguously for compromise and national agreement and awarded the "Kadima" party leadership of the country. For the first time in 2 decades, the 'Center-Left' - including Kadima, the pensioners' party, Meretz, Labor and the Arab parties - had the majority in government, with 70 Mks. The Likud, with Binyamin Netanyahu at its head leading a hawkish, right-wing stance, was crushed and won only 12 mandates, while Lieberman followed closely  with 11 mandates.

Based on the results of the votes, Israel Beitenu's (Israel Our Home) entry into the government was, in fact, a slap in the face for the average voter who expressed, again unambiguously, deep mistrust for the politics of the Right-wing extremists.

From the first day of his entry into the government, Avigdor Lieberman behaved as if it was his party that won the vote and as if the 'fundamentals of government' was but an unworthy, decorative document, not to be given any meaning whatsoever. Instead of accepting the general population's decision and taking his place on the opposition's bench, Lieberman decided to act from within by joining the government in an effort to torpedo any political progress.

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