The photo says it all

This photo, taken outside Jerusalem, is emblematic of the growing gap between Israeli settlers and indigenous Palestinians in the occupied West Bank. The straight, paved, wide road can only be used by Israeli settlers (often called a "bypass" road) while the narrow, winding road is used by Palestinians.


It is easy to see why commerce and transportation are made much harder by this sort of separation. This is the sort of regime that emerged during the "salad years" of the Oslo Accords. Supposedly, the interim treaty was supposed to make life better for both Israelis and Palestinians, but instead, Palestinians found that their land was still confiscated for settlements and bypass roads, their agricultural and industrial goods still barred from export, and the economy still stagnating. In fact, Israel's settler population grew by 40% and housing units in the West Bank increased by 52% between 1993 and 2000. Not surprisingly, Israelis found that their security did not improve.

Today, success in Iraq, Afghanistan and the war on terrorism depends on good relations with Middle Eastern countries, who desperately want and need progress on Arab - Israeli peace. But how can we press for peace when the future Palestinian state is slowly eroding in the face of determined settlement activity? Both Israeli and American interests in the region rest on the answer to this question.

Picture: http://www.flickr.com/photos/david55king/1293158394/