In an exclusive interview with the Yated, Benny, who visited the United States this month, shared some thoughts about the suspension of settlement building in Israel and the prospects of peace with the current Palestinian leadership.

 

Unencumbered by the false hopes and empty promises of peace by Israel’s enemies that are swallowed whole by the Israeli left and center, Begin is clear about what Israel must do - and more importantly not do - to protect itself from the continued onslaught of its foes. Benny is soft-spoken and humble as he talks, but his words are measured, and he shares his feelings on the issues of the day with clarity and precision.

 

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ON THE FREEZE

 

We caught up with Benny the day before Prime Minister Netanyahu met with President Barack Obama at the White House in Washington, DC.

 

I first asked Benny whether he believes the current 10-month freeze on the building of settlements in the West Bank will be extended. The 10-month moratorium is due to end at around the same time as the four-month period set for proximity talks comes to an end.

 

Benny immediately tells me that he is not aware of a “building freeze” that could possibly be extended, suggesting that this is a misnomer.

 

“What can or should be said is that there was no freeze. We never resolved to ‘freeze construction’ in Jewish towns and villages in Samaria and Judea. What was resolved in November of last year was to suspend permits for new construction, but we announced that we would build - and we are building - about 3,000 apartments in Samaria and Judea. So that’s just to set the record straight,” he said.

 

Benny reflected for a moment on the initial commitment by Israel back in November.

 

“When we announced it, the United States administration, as stated by Secretary Clinton, did not express full identification with our resolution, but the administration did express their view that it is an important step and an ‘unprecedented’ step, in their words. Based on that, the administration tried to impress upon the PLO to enter into direct negotiations.”

 

I asked Benny about a possible extension of the current suspension of building permits. He thought for a moment and said, “It was well known to the U.S. administration that the suspension is limited in time to 10 months, and that was well known to everyone involved.”

 

Benny then remarked that this should not be unexpected to anyone aware of Israel’s resolution.

 

“It should not come as a surprise to anyone that this was limited to 10 months,” he says. As Article 4 of our resolution reads, and I quote, ‘At the end of the suspension period, the government of Israel shall revert to construction policy in Judea and Samaria as practiced by previous Israeli governments.’ So all that has been known for a long time. This is a long answer to your question about some pressure being applied [to extend this period]. I don’t know about it.”

 

So the initial agreement was for 10 months and there is no reason to think that it will extend beyond that?

 

“I didn’t say there was an agreement,” says Benny, “though my American colleagues and friends may define it as such. I would be more cautious than that. I said it was well known. It is well known in Israel that the suspension period is going to end and we shall apply Article 4 of our resolution, as specified.

 

“There is no development that has taken place in the last 7 months that we did not foresee in November,” continues Benny. “Everyone knew everything, everyone knows everything, and there is no surprise and no change in the basic conditions, and therefore we are going, of course, to strictly apply our resolution. 

 

“By the way,” Benny digresses for a moment, “we applied the resolution fully to the suspension. The mayors and the heads of the regional communities acted in a very civil manner, obediently, and there is no new construction in Samaria and Judea. So this part of the deal has been applied, and come September 26, the other part will have to be applied and will be applied.”

 

I wonder aloud about the economic affect of the halting of new construction. Benny confirms my assumption.

 

“Evidently, people were damaged. There were great difficulties for families and individuals and the local municipalities because of the suspension. The government decided to compensate for that, and we are not certain at this point in time what the cost is. But there is an economic cost and there is a cost in grievance and difficulty. People planned to construct their new apartment and move in, and we spoiled their plans and undermined the plans. So there is quite a lot of grief that we caused to these citizens - many hundreds of them - during the suspension period. We are aware of it and we are sorry for it, but that was the decision that we took knowing that we would cause some difficulties.”

 

“When will this period come to a close?” I ask.

 

“These difficulties, as we have known, will be over come Sukkot, Chol Hamoed of 5751. As we say, ‘Our time of rejoicing,’ Zeman Simchateinu. On Yud Chet Tishrei, Tof Shin Ayin Alef, September 26, we will revert, as we said, to the construction policy of previous Israeli governments.”

 

“So you don’t anticipate any further demands by the US administration in this regard?”

 

“I don’t know,” says Benny. “I just don’t know. But you, in your questioning, have been clear and strict in your assessment that such pressure will be applied, and I respond to you that I don’t know. All I say is that there is no room for that. There is no room for misunderstanding here, because everyone knows everything and there are no surprises and no changes in the events. And it was clear at the outset to everyone concerned, all around the world, that the suspension is exactly that.”

 

Benny continues by reaching for the proverbial dictionary.

 

“In English,” he says, “they use the term moratorium, which is an action that you take or refrain from taking for a limited period of time. That’s the dictionary I know. That’s the English I know. That’s a moratorium. So the moratorium is limited in time, and once the time limit is reached, the conditions of the moratorium automatically expire. It’s as simple as that.”

 

PROSPECTS FOR PEACE

 

As our conversation progresses, I turn to reports that suggest that Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas is ready to offer Israel various territorial compromises, in addition to taking unprecedented steps in granting an interview to Israeli journalists and meeting with American Jewish leaders. The Arabic daily Al-Hayat indicated that Abbas informed the Obama administration about his willingness to reach a deal on the West Bank and even Yerushalayim.

 

Abbas is attempting to present himself as genuinely intent on reaching a peace agreement, which leads me to my next question for Mr. Begin. I ask the veteran Knesset member if he feels that the efforts to renew talks with the Palestinians are real and if there is any hope for peace to be reached at this point with the parties involved.

 

“No,” says Benny with full conviction. “There is no prospect at all for any peace agreement or long-term peace between any government of Israel - any government - and the PLO leadership.”

 

He says that he bases his assessment on various observations.

 

“Firstly, previous governments of Israel in the years 2000 and 2008 proposed very far-reaching concessions and they were to no avail. No agreement was reached. In August of 2009, Fatah, the main PLO faction, assembled their Congress in Bais Lechem and resolved within the context of their political platform that they would reaffirm Chapter One of the Fatah charter, and if you look at Chapter One, you’ll see Article 19 stating that their goal is, through the elimination of the Zionist entity, to reach the liberation of Palestine, of course extending, as you can understand, through the whole area between the Jordan and the Sea. They also resolved, and I quote, an absolute and irrevocable objection to the notion of Israel as a Jewish state. They also resolved that the Arab-Palestinian refugees should apply the Right of Return, plus compensation.”

 

These developments and resolutions, says Benny, explain logically why no agreement has been reached - twice - despite all the concessions.

 

“As we read two days ago,” he adds, “the Arabic daily Al-Hayat newspaper in London proposed that Jerusalem would be divided and the eastern part would be the capital city of a Palestinian state. They proposed that Israel would control the Jewish Quarter in the Old City and the Western Wall. This means that they insist, as they have insisted in the past, that the PLO would obtain sovereignty over the Temple Mount and the Mount of Olives. This is, of course, a known non-starter. It was a non-starter for Mr. Olmert, with all the concessions that he proposed. So these are very grave difficulties on the road to an agreement.”

 

Benny says that the current political make-up of Gaza and the West bank also contribute to his stance that peace does not have a chance.

 

“Since June 2007, the Gaza area is being fully controlled by the branch of the Islamic Brotherhood called Hamas, fueled, armed, financed and trained by Iran and Syria. There is no reason to believe that in any foreseeable future, the PLO will be able to regain control over Gaza. That means, of course, that one cannot perceive a Palestinian state stretching through territorial contiguity from Gaza to Judea and Samaria. Hence, no agreement can actually be signed, because without the territory contiguity to be obtained through so-called ‘safe passage’ from Gaza to Judea, no agreement can be reached. Such safe passage would inevitably lead to the importing and exporting of terrorism from Gaza, under Hamas, to Judea and Samaria, at present under the PLO, and Hamas will be able, within a short period of time, to kick the PLO out as they did in Gaza.”

 

As we conclude our discussion, Benny paints a somewhat bleak picture for the future of Middle East peace.

 

“What we’ve discussed is only a partial list of the difficulties which lead me to the assessment that in the foreseeable future, no agreement within the PLO and any makeup of an Israeli government is actually feasible.”