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What the Palestinians need is a Nelson Mandela

Deborah Solomon interviews Dan Gillerman, Israel’s departing ambassador to the United Nations, in the Times Sunday Magazine. (Solomon’s questions in bold)

The Bush administration, it seems, has not done much to advance the Mideast peace process. Would you agree?

I think the key is in the Arab world. The Palestinians’ real tragedy is that they have not been able to produce a Nelson Mandela. Every single day, Muslims are killed by Muslims. You do not see a single Muslim leader get up and say, “Enough is enough.” It’s nearly as if we live in a world where if Christians kill Muslims, it’s a crusade. If Jews kill Muslims, it’s a massacre. And when Muslims kill Muslims, it’s the Weather Channel. Nobody cares.

What about Mahmoud Abbas, the impressively moderate head of the Palestinian Authority?

I am not saying Abbas is a Mandela. But at least he is willing to talk, and the Arab world should stand with him and legitimize him and stand against the extremists. They are not doing that.

Good points all. Of course, I can’t say I share his other politics. Gillerman recently called Jimmy Carter a bigot. And I’m tired of people comparing U.S. Iran relations to Neville Chaimberlain’s appeasement of the Nazis.

But you have to admit, this man is one hell of a diplomat:

You are about to be replaced at the U.N. by Gabriela Shalev, a law professor at Ono Academic College with no experience as a diplomat. Can any regular person be a diplomat?

I’m sure Gaby will do great. Diplomacy is not something you can learn at school or in the foreign service. A diplomat is a person who can tell you to go to hell and actually make you look forward to the journey.

Whom would you like to see win the presidential election in this country?

I don’t think it would be right for me to voice an opinion on American politics. I would be crucified. This is the worst gaffe you can make as a diplomat, to take sides.

You’re wearing a tie decorated with elephants. Is that a sign of your loyalty to the Republican candidate?

No, no, my loyalty is to pink elephants.

See the full interview.

2 Responses

  1. Abbas has been such a strong leader that he lost the last election, for many of the reasons cited by yaniv.

    Solomon and Gillerman may want to push the idea of Abbas-as-leader, but the evidence isn’t there. More likely, he’s telling Solomon’s readers to “go to hell and actually mak[ing them] look forward to the journey.”

  2. As someone who claims he doesn’t share Dan Gillerman’s “other” politics, I would have hoped for a healthier dose of skepticism from you regarding this interview.

    Just three semi-quick points on this:

    1) The frequently repeated Israeli claim that its somehow acceptable under international opinion for Muslims to kill Muslims doesn’t stand to scrutiny. Was international or Arab opinion silent on Hamas-Fatah violence, on recent conflict in Beirut, on Sunni-Shia civil war in Iraq? Not if you take the time to read a decent cross-section of international and Arab papers, bloggers, and/or politicians’ statements.

    2) Even assuming an absence of such commentary, I fail to see how one charismatic and inspirational Palestinian could simultaneously resolve the underlying issues feeding all this wide-ranging violence in the Middle East, or even in Occupied Palestine. It is hard to imagine any such Nelson Mandela figure be viewed by Israelis as a peacemaker rather than Mandela’s earlier identity as a “terrorist”.

    3) Gillerman wants more Arab support for Abbas so as to legitimize his efforts. The reason Abbas does not have more such support is precisely because he is viewed as either subservient to Israel or utterly ineffectual. In support of this claim, Abbas’ critics highlight his inability to halt settlement expansion, reduce Israeli military incursions into Palestinian territory, improve Palestinian mobility, or better overall economic conditions under occupation. These are all areas where Israel, not other Arab nations, could easily “support” Abbas and help him earn more widespread political support.

    There are many strategic and tactical decisions taken by Palestinian groups with which I personally disagree. But, in the end, I must conclude on the evidence that Israel’s continual interference in the Occupied Territories has a most significant and negative role in Palestinian governance. Under such circumstances, the Palestinians cannot be entirely to blame for not producing the world’s next Mandela, Gandhi or MLK Jr.

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