Keeping up with Jones in West Bank - An Idea Whose Time has Come?

National Security advisor James Jones is not the only one in the US who wants an international force in the West Bank. It's an idea that seems to be popular about Obama administration nominees and wannabes. Aluf Benn writes:

 

General James Jones, whom U.S. President-elect Barack Obama is widely expected to tap as his national security adviser, supports the deployment of an international force in the West Bank instead of the Israel Defense Forces. He also opposes Israel's demand to retain extensive security control over the territories even after a Palestinian state is established...

 

In response to Israel's claim that the Palestinians cannot be trusted with responsibility for security, Jones, a former NATO commander, proposed a NATO-based international force that would later transfer control to the Palestinians.

The same idea has been proposed by Robert Malley and by Brent Scowcroft and Zbigniew Brzezinski. Scowcroft and Brz wrote:

That could be dealt with by deploying an international peacekeeping force, such as one from NATO, which could not only replace Israeli security but train Palestinian troops to become effective.

 

Are Americans really going to be enthusiastic about sending "NATO" (==US) troops to the West Bank. If US Marines liked Beirut and Iraq, they will love the West Bank. A really explosive situation.

 

Faced with terror groups, peacekeeping forces either get blown up or carefully mind their own business and ignore their mandate, as UNIFIL troops are doing in Lebanon, where Hezbollah is allowed to do more or less as it pleases, in defiance of all the UN resolutions calling for disarmament of Hezbollah, including UN Security Council Resolution 1701.

 

Before agreeing to such a force, Israel should demand, and the world, if it is wise, should agree, that the effectiveness of UNIFIL in disarming Hezbollah in Lebanon must be demonstrated, as well as the effectivenes of NATO in keeping order in Afghanistan. Let's solve one mess before making another one. Let the US and NATO climb out of one quagmire before sinking into another one.

 

Ami Isseroff