Cap Phantom

US Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice is at it again talking up the prospects of ending the 140 years old Arab-Jewish conflict by the adoption of a two state solution involving the creation of an Arab state between Jordan and Israel – the 23rd Arab State in the world should it ever eventuate.

This crowd pleasing prediction of peace has been made by Ms Rice despite four fruitless years of intense international diplomacy to achieve just that solution by America, Russia, the United Nations and the European Union – the Quartet – under their meticulously detailed and crafted Roadmap first published in 2003.

The United Nations News Service heralded the Roadmap at the time as a:

“performance-based and goal-driven roadmap, with clear phases, timelines, target dates, and benchmarks aiming at progress through reciprocal steps by the two parties in the political, security, economic, humanitarian, and institution-building fields, under the auspices of the Quartet. The destination is a final and comprehensive settlement of the Israel-Palestinian conflict by 2005, as presented in President Bush’s speech of 24 June, and welcomed by the EU, Russia and the UN in the 16 July and 17 September Quartet Ministerial statements.”

Not one of these goals has been remotely achieved – an abysmal failure by anyone’s standards -especially given the amount of political, financial and diplomatic clout vested in the Quartet.

Yet speaking at a joint media conference on 2 August with Mahmoud Abbas – the Palestinian Authority (PA) President and Palestine Liberation Organisation (PLO) Executive Chairman – Ms Rice was decidedly upbeat when she said:

“I want to note that we will have a discussion about the political discussions that you are having on a bilateral basis with [Israel’s] Prime Minister Olmert. The Prime Minister said to me that he looks forward to continued discussions with you and that he is ready to discuss the fundamental issues that will lead to negotiations soon for the creation of a Palestinian state. And I know that that is your desire too, and the United States wants to support that bilateral track.”

When asked by an inquiring reporter as to what those “fundamental issues” might be, Ms Rice gave this remarkable reply:

“ I believe that the word “fundamental” speaks for itself. And the desire to move toward a two- state solution seems to me to be there on both sides, and there are a lot of issues that are going to have to be discussed in order to get to a two-state solution.”

Sorry Ms Rice – every conceivable “fundamental issue” there is – and that you seem even too frightened to specifically identify – was discussed in detail in 2000 at Camp David and Taba in negotiations between President Bill Clinton, then PA and PLO leader Yasser Arafat and Israel’s then Prime Minister Ehud Barak.

Those negotiations led to the rejection of the two state solution offered by Israel in 90% of the West Bank and Gaza and effectively ended any prospect of the two state solution ever becoming a reality unless there was a total revolution in the thinking of the PA and the PLO.

One of the fundamental issues on which those negotiations foundered was the failure of Mr Arafat to recognise any political rights of the Jews to sovereignty in any part of the West Bank and Gaza – a policy that had been maintained by the PLO without change since 1964, by the PA since its formation in 1994 and by Mr Abbas as head of both organisations to this very day.

Those political rights were recognised by France and Great Britain in 1920, formalised by unanimous vote of all 51 members of the League of Nations in 1922, endorsed by a joint resolution of both Houses of the Congress of the United States in the same year, and preserved by the United Nations Charter in 1945.

The Quartet’s failure to insist on these international agreements being recognised and accepted by the Palestinian Authority and the Palestine Liberation Organisation remains one of the principal causes for the Quartet’s Roadmap collapsing into the total chaos it is today.

Statements such as Ms Rice’s are just diplomatic doublespeak, empty grandstanding and devoid of reality. They only serve to hold those making them open to ridicule and loss of credibility as the objective they so earnestly desire – the Quartet’s two state solution – continues to elude them.

It is surely time for Ms Rice to put the following questions to Mr Abbas to determine whether he is really sincere in his desire for a two state solution.

1. Does the Palestinian Authority accept and recognise the legality of

(i) Article 6 of the League of Nations Mandate for Palestine giving the Jews the right to closely settle State lands and waste lands not required for public purposes in the West Bank?

(ii) Article 80 of the United Nations Charter which preserves the above right?

(iii) Security Council Resolution 242 – which does not require Israel to withdraw from all the territories occupied in the Six Day War and recognises Israel’s right to live in peace within secure and recognised boundaries?

2. Does the Palestine Liberation Organisation and the Palestinian Authority recognise the existence of the State of Israel and have they abandoned violence and armed struggle against Israel?

3. If the answer to 2 is “yes” – when will Mr Abbas call a meeting of the Palestinian National Council to revoke articles 2, 3, 6-10, 13-23 and 30 of the PLO Charter- all of which are in direct conflict with the principles laid out in question 2.

If Ms Rice can get a positive response from Mr Abbas to these crucial questions, she might well be able to make a meaningful statement on the future of the Quartet’s two state solution.

If she is too embarrassed to put these questions to Mr Abbas or is too afraid to hear the answers, then maybe she can get Mr Olmert to ask them during his “political discussions” with Mr Abbas.

If neither wants to take the plunge then maybe someone in the press corps might be emboldened or even induced to put these questions to Mr Abbas at one of his next media conferences. The answers will certainly create front page headlines no matter what response is evoked.

Until these questions are answered one thing is crystal clear – any hope of the Quartet’s two state solution ever eventuating is doomed to failure.

For proper baby care, babies always need to be pampered. They are so sensitive and mothers are always worried for them. One way of providing them with comfort and relaxation is bathing. You can find a wide range of the items necessary for baby bath. The most important are bathtub, towel, shampoo, soap etc. So if you are planning to buy some baby shower gift then why not to buy baby bathing utensils instead of fondant baby shower cakes etc?

Baby bath tub is very important as it gives ease to parents while bathing a kid, because infants are difficult to handle. There are various types of bath tubs you can go for. Baby towel is also essential item that you have to buy. Towels in different sizes and bright colors are available. You specially have to check the fabric of towel while buying it. Baby washing clothes are also essential for bathing your toddler. These are the items that you can also gift a mother -to-be on baby shower. The most important items for baby bath are soap and shampoo. You have to be very careful when selecting these items. There is a big variety of these products but not all are good enough in quality. You should go for reliable brand in baby shampoos and soaps which are baby skin friendly. They should not irritate the skin of your baby and meant to keep it fresh and soft. The shampoo should be of a kind which cannot irritate the eyes. The best soaps and shampoos for babies are the ones having organic ingredients. These are chemical free and hypo allergic and best for baby skin.

If you want your baby to have fun while bathing, you can also buy bath toys for him.  They will be a fun element for him and instead of getting irritated your kid will play with the toys and you will easily get him bathed. All these items are also very useable if you want them to gift a mother-to-be on a baby shower.

Amidst battle cries for Israeli cabinet resignations, there lies a sinister undertow that has been slowly churning and deepening over the last decade in Israeli politics. If left unchecked, it threatens the stability of every future Israeli government, and even, by proxy, the future of the State of Israel. The dangerous trend of political unilateralism has paved the way for the type of political negligence and arrogance that was so shockingly documented in the Winograd Report.

Political Unilateralism has become the scourge of Israeli politics. Issues of grave importance and vitality to national security are left to the whims of leaders who believe they have been voted a personal mandate and therefore are personally responsible for Israel’s welfare. These same leaders present strategies that become their personal missions, and, instead of engaging in democratic debate or creative analysis, push their agendas through government via deals, party politics and back room bartering. Looking at the last decade’s most important national decisions we see a pattern of unilateralism and non-democratic means utilised to push these decisions through the Knesset and out of reach of open and effective democratic challenge.

The Oslo Accords, hatched by a secretive elite and unleashed onto an unsuspecting world with great fanfare, were only presented to the Israeli Knesset after a White House signing. The subsequent vote was won by a breathtakingly slim margin that was manipulated by weeks of closed-door meetings. The trademark of this period was a rampage of violent Palestinian terror. Despite this, the legacy of Oslo was major concessions expected by Israel in return for empty promises from the Palestinians.

Under Ehud Barak, Israel’s midnight flight from Lebanon was preceded by his daily personal pronouncements months in advance despite the army being under fire daily. This was followed closely by his shocking, non- government ratified concessions to Arafat at Camp David, which were famously turned down. The result of this offer was the fury of the second intifada. The legacy of his Lebanon decision was the build-up of Hizbollah on the Lebanese border, and ultimately, the Second Lebanon War.

Ariel Sharon, the sanitizer of political unilateralism, championed the popular strategy that maintained Israel would eventually determine it’s borders if not diplomatically, then unilaterally. Nobody would have imagined that this would translate into the transfer and expulsion of thousands of Jews from their homes by a Jewish government. All this took place amidst blatantly undemocratic threats to fire any minister in the cabinet who did not vote for the disengagement. The result was daily rocket attacks on Israeli civilian populations, and unchecked tunnel building and smuggling of arms into all the evacuated areas. The legacy of this period was the consequent Palestinian elections that brought Hamas into power and onto the world diplomatic stage.

All of the above decisions had severe national consequences. None of the above strategies had a clear national consensus. None of the above was put to a national referendum, despite public outcry. At all times, any massive public protest, from oslo to Gaza, was undemocratically and forcibly opposed and suppressed, from not issuing permits, stopping buses en route, to extreme police violence. It is becoming clear that political unilateralism in Israel is not taking any cues from democracy, but rather from our Arab neighbors.

This political unilateralism has developed as a result of Israel’s party politics. By the time a Prime Minister has taken office, he is convinced of his popularity, national approval, and therefore personal mandate. In addition, this system has all but obliterated political accountability. In parallel to the growth of unilateralism, the Israeli public has felt increasingly powerless to engage in effective democratic protest. If Israel were to replace party popularity with regional responsibility via regional elections, all elected Knesset members would at least be accountable to their constituents, not their parties, and the people would finally have a voice in the Knesset.

It has been long understood that Israeli’s have admired the “bulldozer” mentality and are willing to push aside such “irrelevancies” as democratic discourse in favor of looking “tough” in a region of autocratic bullies. This might be an effective strategy if our political unilateralism was applied in Israel’s best interests, quid pro quo with the Arab world. But when unilateralism is manipulated to seemingly promote democratic ideals when in fact it is achieving the opposite, it becomes a danger to our very existence.

After the Winograd Interim Report, there will be committees established to determine anything and everything from decision making to strategic thinking to wartime chains of command. It is vital for Israel’s future that there be an official recommendation to change the electoral system if our dangerous political malaise is to be cured.

Babies are much sensitive. They need special and extra baby care. All the mothers are very much curious about the health and hygiene of their toddlers. For this reason they try their level best to take care of the cleanliness of their kids. It is a very good habit to give bath to your kid everyday, especially in summer. It needs great perfection and precautions while giving bath to your kid. As the infants are quite difficult to handle, therefore mothers need baby tubs for the bath. It is a good idea to buy the baby bath tubs as a baby shower gift instead of buying traditional edible baby shower cakes.

Baby bathtubs are available in many sizes, shapes and colors. Let us discuss some of the bathtubs that can be found in the market. Aqua baby bath ring is a secure one. The ring seat can easily hold the baby and there is no fear that the kid will fall. The seat on the tub is non slippery and allows the baby to move inside the tub and has also a back for firm support.

A munchkin safety duck baby tub is another type that is quite common. It is a cute duck tube having security disc, which will turn white, if the water in the tub becomes much hotter. This is compact and non slippery. The tub has a headrest, which makes it easy to wash hair of babies. The best thing about this tub is that it is portable and folds easily. You can take it with you wherever you want to take.

Kirby bathtubs are also comfortable ones and make a perfect choice. They are light weighted and make ideal transition from infants to grown up babies. Choosing one from the above mentioned it would be a fun time when a baby takes bath.

Israel is a country filled with beaches and beautiful sights not to be missed. When tourists visit this small country, they are in for a lovely surprise. It is a country filled with traditions and culture, so rich and not available anywhere else in the world. A country that ranks on top of the list when talking about a place that works towards human development, Israel has a lot to offer to this world.

Akko is a fortress that has withstood more than its share of rulers and the climatic changes and is very popular with tourists. This fortress located by the sea was home to Alexander the Great and even known as the Crusader city of the Acre. Right opposite the main entrance is the Mosque of Al Jazzar, which has a distinct Turkish architectural style on the exterior. All these will have you gasping in awe at this magnificient place.

Most tourists visiting Israel want to visit the Black Sea. This world famous tourist attraction is well worth a visit during your holiday in Israel. The water in this ocean is filled with minerals, and there is apparently 10% more oxygen here than elsewhere. The beauty of the Dead Sea is that nothing sinks, everything will float and it is said to have good healing powers for people who swim in it.

The capital city of Israel, Tel Aviv is where the business booms and industries flourish. The city has its share of long stretches of beaches, bars and restaurants that will captivate every visitor to this beautiful land. Most of the people living here migrated from other parts of the world, and so it is a melting pot of culture, and traditions. Make a trip to the Diaspora museum, which will educate the tourists about Jewish culture while in exile; or to the Museum of Art to learn more about this fascinating place.

Ein Avdat National park is hidden from the main road and is the most popular tourist attraction in Israel. In the middle of the desert, a pool of cold water exists, apart from which, there are steep canyons and scenery like nowhere else in the world. Plenty of open space to walk in, but be prepared for the long journey, which can get tiring and challenging, even for the physically fit. The vast variety of flora and fauna in this region makes the tiring journey completely worth it.

An archaeological site, Tzipori is all about the Hasmoneans who settled here back in the 2nd century. This place subsequently became the capital of Gailee, but today is filled with ruins of the original roadways and towering forts that was once standing tall. There is even a Roman villa, with beautiful interiors, mosaic floors, and an array of underground system of cisterns for the curious tourists to quench their curiousity in, while travelling in Israel.

Many holiday makers come to Israel and rent holiday accommodation as holiday homes. They can rent holiday villas or self catering holiday apartments in Israel direct from their holiday home owners.