Are the settlements an excuse not to make peace?

The settlements are definitely a chess piece in a much bigger game and the pinnacle of the failure of the US to be even handed in their foreign policy.

BBC's Q: Are the settlements an excuse not to make peace?
My Q: Why don't the Israelis and Palestinians find some way to just settle?!?!
Ever since I was born and could understand a sentence I have been hearing about this conflict. In a few years I'll be dead but this conflict is likely to go on forever! A conflict involving a mere 10,000 or so square miles (Earth's total land area is about 60 million square miles!) of mostly arid land is what the great human race can't settle!? So much bloodshed and anguish for so little! Amazing!
Archeological records indicate that between 1800 and 1500 BC the Hebrews settled in this area (called Canaan at that time). Since then it has been captured and recaptured by so many Tribes and/or Empires as to leave anyone dumbfounded. Perhaps I should change my name to Dumbfounded Max!

Illegal settlements are an ongoing phase of the conflict. It is astonishing that the world is sitting back and allowing this illegal activity to continue while pretending to discuss peace. Israel is effectively saying "I'll keep emptying your safe while we discuss how much of this stolen money I'm going to keep."

The entire conflict centers around Zionists wanting to take Arab Palestine, remove the Arab population and replace them with Jews to make a Jewish majority and a new Jewish state. This is how Israel was created, this is what the illegal settlements are about (removing Arabs from Arab land and replacing them with Jews) and this is what the Arabs have been resisting since the Zionist plan was first known.

The biggest problem in these peace talks is the lack of will to impose accountability. The rights of each side are well established. The US, however, has historically supported Israel's denial of Palestinian rights while promoting the wishes (not even the rights) of Israel.
Once the rights of each side are given equal bearing, then it becomes clearer that the most likely demographic outcome will demand a one-state solution, where both people share the same land as one country. The illegal settlements would stay and would no longer be Jewish-only. The borders and security would be shared. The illegal walls and checkpoints would fall. The rights of refugees would be returned. The issues they are warring over would be resolved.

For 63 years Israel has been doing nothing other than making concession to the Palestinians and have been rewarded with increasing violence and terror.
Gaza was unilatteraly returned to the Palestinians who immediatly destroyed the infrastructure left for them to develop an economy as well as having abandoned synagogues destroyed in a most vile and profane manner.
There is no peace to be had and those that run around looking for peace are running a fools errand as the Palestinians are not serious about anything other than destroying Israel.
Returning to the 1967 borders so that a Palestinian state dedicated to destroying Israel can be born is not only stupid but certainly a break from reality.
The only solution is for the entire Arab world to make peace with Israel accepting its existence and reigning in Hamas & Hezbollah after which Israel & the Palestinians can have independent states living peacefully side by side.

Both sides think that the land is theirs and theirs alone. Refusal to compromise on this is why peace is so difficult to achieve in that region. The settlements aren't really being used as an excuse not to make peace, but they make this refusal to compromise fiercely obvious -- Israel wants to continue building them no matter what, and Palestine wants them to stop no matter what. For either side to compromise on this would be seen as capitulating to what they deem as "the enemy".

I think that the Palestinians would be right to walk out of the peace talks if the settlement are continued.It's their land and this is just another example of the continued lack of respect and general disregard, to the plight of Palestinians, by the Israeli government.Therefore, in my opinion, its a pretty legitimate reason.

Many excuses are used to justify conflict; none of them are valid. In this one, since structures on lands are not relevant to the validity of the ownership claims on these lands, settlements aren’t a valid reason for either side to stop negotiations. If owned or stolen the lands remain so. In any civilized society, constructing houses does not affect the validity of the claims to lands upon which they are built. Law could settle this problem. Seeking legal remedies in the courts of violence reflects badly upon the various claimants. The failure to establish an impartial court with recognized jurisdiction reflects badly upon the World.
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Protestants are born and build homes all the time in Northern Ireland, are they an obstacle to peace or even an excuse for there not being peace, or is once again, Jews and Israel held up to a standard that nobody else on the face of the earth is expected to adhere to?

This comment was removed because the moderators found it broke the house rules. Explain.

These aren't any excuse! This a real showstopper. I don't know how does Israel pretend to settle peace while they keep invading foreign soil.

In the end, as always, Palestinians are the ones who must concede things to Israel.

What about refugees? And what about their water they cannot use since Israel takes most of it.

I feel it's highly time to start requesting Israel to give something (if they really want peace).

I'm not sure where the building is going to be allowed, but from what I've read the outlines of any likely deal include some areas near Jerusalem that are heavily settled going to Israel. These are actually suburbs of Jerusalem. If that's where they're building then from a purely practical perspective building there shouldn't be a big problem.

It seems, however, that the potential deal makers on both sides are legitimately wary of the deal makers on the other side's ability to force their more radical citizens to adhere to any deal. Can Netanyahu bring the settlers into the fold, or do the parties that support them bail on the coalition government and leave Netanyahu out of power? Can Abbas actually make Hamas stop killing Israeli citizens and violently pursuing an Islamic state in all of "Palestine"?

Both sides need reassuring, and right now the Israelis are not showing any willingness to stand up to their radical fringe.

Mahmoud Abbas states the talks are a wate of time unless the 10 month moritorium continued, well how is it that he decided to come to peace talks when the moritorium had only three or four weeks to expire, why did he not come at the beginning of the 10 months which would have made more sense. On the one hand Mr Abbas has to consult with leaders of the neighbouring arab countries, in other words Israel has to meet with the approval of other parties for talks to go ahead, not just with Mr. Abass. So that these peace talks puts israel in an impossible situation to negotiate for a Palestinian State when Mr. Abbas is not free and independent to reach any agreement. Israel is a democractic country and has obligations within its own laws and has little choice but to end the moritorium. It seems that peace talks are usually doomed before they commence.

Why does this situation continue GB created Palestine. Why cant they be recognized and be given their rightful territory. US GB and whoever else is involved just draw up some acknowledgment and give them their land

The settlements (i.e. the ultra-conservatives who will topple Netanyahu's government if their demands for more settlements aren't met) are the Israeli version of Hamas (i.e. the Palestinians who insist it is "my way or the highway.") Ignore the intransigents (ultraconservative Jews and Israel-denying Hamas,) and the chances for peace during the next year are increased exponentially. With US backing, Abbas seems better able to ignore Hamas than Netanyahu can stand up to the internal politics in Israel.

Of course these settlements need to stop for the talks to be productive! This area has one of the highest concentrations of population in the world and by continuing to build Israel is sabotaging efforts to bring peace. It's no different than throwing stones at a hornets nest. Leave it alone for now, and deal with it over the course of the talks.

Judaism is supposed to have begun in or around 1800 BC. Islam is supposed to have begun in 600+ AD. Judaism is the second oldest monotheistic religion in the world!

Prior to the advent of Islam where did the followers of Judaism stay? There was an exodus from Egypt where the followers of Judaism were slaves. Yes? The followers of Judaism were banished or exiled from their land. Yes? They came back. Yes?

Whichever way you look at it and whatever be the ancillary facts; the prime fact is: Where were the followers of Judaism staying before the advent of Islam?

If they were staying in what is called Israel currently and Judea and Samaria previously then the followers of Judaism can be seen to have simply reclaimed the land that was originally theirs!

Who is it who disagrees? Give me your reasons backed up by facts.

The Israeli government is demonstrating that it is more frightened of its own extremists (ultra-conservative settlement builders) than it is of "the enemy," which makes for impossible negotiating conditions.

If it weren't for the fact that 1) Israel is constructing these settlements against international rules, 2) Israel has abrogated its agreements in the Helsinki Accords, and 3) Israel uses "double talk" to support its illegal actions, the Palestinians could be blamed for using more settlement-building as an excuse to compromise peace. As it stands, however, the onus is on Israel as the party who prefers stalemate.

There are times that I feel like I'm listening to a story about 2 pre-teens arguing over who gets to sit in the front seat of the car.

There are times, I've been embarrassed by what the leaders here in the USA have done. I can't imagine how the the people of Palestine and Israel can stand supporting leaders that seem to do everything possible to make their lives harder. No compromise to save the children from the horrors of conflict. No compassion for the families of 2 great people, that are forced to suffer with the loses of war. No consideration for the progress and growth, except for the taking of land and it's few benefits in a strife filled land.

How hard can it be to just sit down and work together.

Yes, they are an excuse.

Let's note that these are not "new" settlements, they are being built on lands taken from Palestinians after the Israelis bulldozed the Palestinians' homes and chainsawed down their olive grove orchards.

This just a war in slow motion, constantly encroaching on more and more Palestinian land. The Israelis are taking and taking more Palestinian lands to expand their living room. The Israelis constitute an existential threat to the Palestinians, their homes, farms, and lands.

Maybe it is time to send in the UN Blue Hats to enforce the International Laws and Agreements that the Israelis are violating. Or maybe the West should invade Israel and bring about "Regime Change."

My suggestion!

Remove access to the rest of the world! No money, power, communication and everything else possible for 1 month. Except for food and medical.

What an interesting irony that these two peoples are divided by the Abraham "One God" Religion.

Apparently it is a Religion of War and not of Peace. Why, just look at the history.

@ Tom D Ford
I wish that you would read my post to better understand the true dynamics rather than politically correct blather.

The Israelis will never agree to peace. The whole country was built on stolen land. They will continue to build and get away with it. There can never be peace in the ME while we are talking 'chosen people' and 'god'. It is all a fruitless exercise. Time for someone to lay down the law or forget about it.

All the rhetoric put aside, the settlements have not expanded in years. That is, there has been construction but always within the already present settlement walls, so the area of the settlements did not grow. The "ever-expanding Israel" is a myth, in contrast, the Israelis have even offered to exchange Arab towns within Israel for Israeli settlements, which the Palestinians refused. However, the settlements do use increasingly more water and that could be a problem for the surrounding Palestinian towns who rely primarily on the scarce groundwater that cannot even sustain the rapidly growing Palestinian population, let alone the the Palestinians AND the Israeli settlements. It's clearly a battle over rhetoric (including religion) and water, not over land.

"The Israelis will never agree to peace. The whole country was built on stolen land. They will continue to build and get away with it. There can never be peace in the ME while we are talking 'chosen people' and 'god'. It is all a fruitless exercise. Time for someone to lay down the law or forget about it."

(1) Jews originated in Israel.

(2) Judaism is thousands of years older than Islam

(3) Since you place all the blame on one side, what is your solution? Ethnically cleansing all of the Jews from there?

(4) YOu mention God, yet single out the Jews. There are far more Muslims on earth than Jews, and Muslims believe in God.

(5) YOu say "they [the Jews] will get away with it" by building. I suppose you are against Protestants from living in Northern Ireland and building homes. I suppose you are against hindus in Kashmir, and I have no doubt you most oppose people of european ancestry living in the Americans and building homes. If not, why do you have a double standard for Jews?