The number of Western commentators – well, Zionists on the drip-feed, actually – who are proclaiming the wonders of an economically-buoyant West Bank is seemingly growing by the day. Why worry about ending the occupation and ongoing settlement building when you can see a new Hollywood film at the local cinema? Palestinians should be so pleased.
We can now add to the list Michael Oren, Israel’s ambassador to the US, writing recently in the Wall Street Journal:
The people of Gaza will have to take notice of their West Bank counterparts and wonder why they, too, cannot enjoy the same economic benefits and opportunities. At the same time, Arab states that have pledged to assist the Palestinian economy in the past, but which have yet to fulfill those promises, may be persuaded of the prudence of investing in the West Bank. Israel, for its part, will continue to remove obstacles to Palestinian development. If the West Bank can serve as a model of prosperity, it may also become a prototype of peace.
This kind of “economic peace” is a sham dressed up as progress.