Settlers mulling life under Palestinian Authority rule

Although it’s hardly mainstream thinking, voices on both sides are quietly contemplating an alternative: Perhaps some Jews can live in a future Palestine, even if only in small numbers, the way Arabs live in Israel.

 

That would reduce Israel’s challenge, perhaps avoiding possible violent settler resistance. It would also absolve the Palestinians of an uncomfortable charge sometimes leveled at them using a Nazi term — that they want a state that is “judenrein,” or “free of Jews.”

 

By “allowing those Israelis who always claim to love the land more than the state to live out their dreams … you have the chance to defang one of the most difficult issues (among many) and set a solid foundation for a just, robust, free and democratic Palestine,” said Akram Baker, an independent Palestinian analyst.

 

The problem, of course, is that most settlers have no desire to live under Palestinian rule — and in fact moved to the West Bank to prevent the establishment of a Palestinian state. Others are radicals who could well prove problem citizens.

 

Read More: Settlers mulling life under Palestinian Authority rule – Israel – Jerusalem Post