I had hoped that Condoleeza Rice would have brought fresh realism to the State Department, but have been disappointed. Instead, she has either become a status quo diplomat, trying the same failed policies in the middle east that have failed for decades, or allowed herself to become controlled by the bureaucracy that wants to maintain that status quo. Either way, by refusing to acknowledge the fundamental flaw in all Israel-Palestinian "peace processes," which is to view process as a goal in and of itself and to turn a blind eye to the fact that the Palestinians do not desire peace (credit Hillary Clinton for noticing), Dr. Rice ensures a failure of American foreign policy. After all, a policy based on fiction - that Fatah is peaceful or that Mahmoud Abbas is either interested in or capable of a durable peace accord - is doomed to fail. Caroline Glick has more:
US Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice left many Israelis and supporters of Israel scratching their heads in disbelief this week...Watching President Bush fall down the same sinkhole everyone else in the middle east has because of a false faith in Palestinian intentions is difficult. It would have been nice to see him stiffen his spine and remain opposed to terrorism rather than ignoring it just because he adheres to a myth that Abbas or Fatah are interested in peace. Bush and Rice will see zero progress this year because their policies are based on this fallacy.On Monday, a well organized group of hundreds of Arab thugs threw rocks at Jewish motorists in Jerusalem...
Outside Hebron, an Israeli was attacked by yet another mob and escaped alive only by opening fire at his assailants.
In another incident, Fatah forces murdered a Palestinian and seriously wounded an Israeli outside of Hebron. The US-financed group claimed its operatives lured the Israeli to the scene.
In Ramallah and Hebron, thousands of Fatah members rallied in support of Hamas and its missile offensive against the western Negev...
In Judea and Samaria, Fatah leader and Palestinian Authority Chairman Mahmoud Abbas referred to the IDF's operations in Gaza as an attempted "holocaust." He praised terrorists, suspended negotiations with Israel and reiterated his refusal to recognize Israel. His deputies and associates echoed his incendiary remarks and also spoke in support of armed attacks against US forces in Iraq.
Then there is Egypt. Last Monday, two days before Hamas escalated its missile offensive against southern Israel, Egypt released 21 Hamas terrorists from custody in el-Arish. Twelve of the men had reportedly been detained while carrying weapons and attempting to cross into Israel to carry out terrorist attacks. On Monday, they were escorted to Gaza by scores of Egyptian security officials and handed over to Hamas...
But none of these developments had any impact on Rice, or for that matter on her boss President George W. Bush. Ignoring Fatah's obvious involvement in terror and increasingly overt support for Hamas's missile war against Israeli civilians, Bush overrode a congressional ban on the transfer of $150 million to Fatah. Similarly, in her visit to Egypt this week, Rice announced that the administration was overriding a congressional decision to block the transfer of $120m. to Egypt due to its refusal to prevent Hamas weapons smuggling operations from Egypt.
