SECURITY  ביטחון  ألأمن

Background

Security is a prime concern for both parties when negotiating a final settlement; however, it is often referred to in relation to Israel’s concerns. Over the past decades Israel has suffered from suicide bombings, premeditated terrorism and rocket attacks on civilians from Gaza, the West Bank and Lebanon. In response, Israel has carried out airstrikes and other military actions. It has been established since the outset of the Oslo process that for the security arrangements should not compromise Israel’s security while assuring the Palestinians’ capabilities to ensure law enforcement and public order with a strong police force but without military capacities.

The problem

Israel fears high-trajectory weapon launching, terrorist activity and other hostile attacks on its civilian centers along its Eastern border from the West Bank; along its Southern border from Gaza; and across its northern border from Hezbollah in Lebanon. A particular concern is that withdrawing from the West Bank would turn the area into a terrorist launch pad, much like Gaza became after Israel disengaged in 2005, and Hamas took over.

While Israel has often claimed that peace depends on security guarantees from the Palestinians, the Palestinians have maintained that only once a final agreement has been reached, Israel will receive these security guarantees.

The positions

Israel demands that a future Palestinian state will be demilitarized or at the very least have limited arms and be banned from having any alliances with other Arab regimes. Israel also wants to have an IDF presence in the Jordan Valley; sole control over the air space and the electromagnetic sphere; and early warning stations in the West Bank.

The Palestinians view Israel's precondition that a future Palestinian state be non-armed, as limiting Palestinian sovereignty as a nation among nations. Although the Palestinians agree not to purchase heavy weapons such as tanks and air fighters, they object to the Israeli demand of demilitarization. The Palestinians also want a foreign force (such as NATO) to be present in the Jordan Valley instead of the IDF.

Proposed solutions

Various security conditions and parameters have been discussed at length during permanent status negotiations in the last fifteen years.  

Points to be discussed

• A demilitarized Palestinian state
• Early warning stations
• Air space, electromagnetic sphere
• International/multinational/multilateral presence: peace making/peace keeping/monitoring/operative, etc.
• Border regimes
• Israeli presence in the Jordan Valley: modalities, withdrawal, timeframe, etc.
• Security treaty between Israel, Palestine and Jordan

The following link presents official agreement, speeches and unofficial documents relating to the Israeli-Palestinian negotiations:
http://heb.inss.org.il/index.aspx?id=4601