It is difficult to understate the enormity of the humiliation suffered by Secretary of State John Kerry in the Middle East this week–and the man who sent him there, President Barack Obama. The Egyptians made him undergo a security screening, the Israelis made it clear they did not want him there, and finally, the Israeli Cabinet–which can never seem to agree on much of anything–rejected his “ceasefire” proposal unanimously.
Kerry’s proposal was a non-starter–even for parties that believe in exchanging territory for peace–because it would have left most of the Hamas terror infrastructure intact, leading inevitably to more attacks against Israel. A source told the Jerusalem Post that the Cabinet viewed Kerry’s offer as “a Qatari proposal with ornaments”–referring to the fact that Qatar, which has been funding Hamas, has a “plan” that would give Hamas a victory.
Even worse, Kerry and his crack Foggy Bottom team seem to have expected success, writes the Post: “Earlier on Friday, aides to Kerry were said to be cautiously optimistic regarding the chances of a cease-fire between Israel and Hamas, Channel 10 reported.” The champions of so-called “smart power” have now wasted whatever diplomatic credibility the U.S. had left.
The only response remaining should have been the first: let Israel win.
Photo: Amr Nabil/AP, 2011
COMMENTS
Please let us know if you're having issues with commenting.