Condensed From "The Right Road to Peace"

 By Binyamin Elon,  originally published in June, 2003

Former Minister of Tourism, Jerusalem, Israel.

 The following document is taken from the original version of "The Right Road To Peace" by Rabbi (and then Minister of Tourism) Binyamin Elon, dated June, 2003. It is condensed only to reduce the volume of information and is not in any way meant to interpret the message.  We offer this short overview only for the purpose of praying for a Biblical solution for peace in Israel. All scriptures have been added to the original text and have been taken from The New King James Version. Other than the Summary and the Scriptures, all wording is in the original text document.

Why the "Road Map" won't work 

 The establishment of a Palestinian state in Judea, Samaria and Gaza (the West Bank), as proposed in plans such as the "Road Map," will only prolong the Arab‑ Israeli conflict and exact a heavy toll in human life. From every aspect ‑ geographic, economic and demographic ‑ it is clear that it will be impossible to resolve the problem within the small, overcrowded area between the Jordan River and the Mediterranean Sea.  Why ‑ after the failure of the Oslo agreements ‑ are we reverting to a model already proven catastrophic for both sides?

 Psalm 2:1-2  "Why do the nations rage, and the people plot a vain thing?  The kings of the earth set themselves and the rulers take counsel together against the Lord and against His Anointed."

Introduction to the Elon Peace Plan 

Only with application of a regional solution that includes the entire territory of British Mandatory Palestine (land of Israel) can the peace process be delivered from its impasse. A regional solution based on geopolitical and economic logic can provide the Middle East with long‑term peace, prosperity and stability.

Expanding the solution to include both sides of the Jordan River creates a new reality in which:

  • Israelis and Palestinian Arabs can exist alongside one another in two genuine, sovereign states. 

  • A well‑defined natural border would be established, far from population centers. 

  • Both states would have strategic depth and ample land reserves. 

 Dealing directly with final‑status issues, the Elon Peace Plan offers:

  • An immediate permanent‑status settlement to end the conflict. 

  • Full and comprehensive rehabilitation of Palestinian refugees. 

  • The granting of national expression and full rights for all Palestinian Arabs. 

  • Removal of the threat to Israel's existence as a Jewish state. 

Zechariah 2:10 "Sing and rejoice, O daughter of Zion!  For behold, I am coming and I will dwell in your midst, says the Lord".

 

Key principles of the Elon Peace Plan 

Immediate dissolution of the Palestinian Authority, a non‑viable entity with no future, whose existence precludes the termination of the conflict. Israel will uproot the Palestinian terror infrastructure. All arms will be collected, incitement will be stopped and all the refugee camps, which serve as incubators for terror, will be dismantled. Terrorists and their direct supporters will be deported. 

Ezekiel 36: 15 "Nor will I let you near the taunts of the nations anymore, nor hear the reproach of the peoples anymore, nor shall you cause your nation to stumble anymore."

Israel, the United States and the international community will recognize the Kingdom of Jordan as the only legitimate representative of the Palestinians. Jordan will once again recognize itself as the Palestinian nation‑state.  Israeli sovereignty will be asserted over Judea, Samaria and Gaza (the West Bank). The Arab residents of these areas will become citizens of the Palestinian state in Jordan. The status of these citizens, their connection to the two states and the manner of administration of their communal lives will be decided in an agreement between the governments of Israel and Jordan (Palestine). 

 

The Hashemite Kingdom of Jordan is in fact a Palestinian state:    

The Palestinian flag is the Jordanian flag.

After Jordan's invasion of Israel in 1948, it unilaterally annexed Judea and Samaria and granted citizenship to all its population, both residents and refugees. It enacted a number of major constitutional amendments expressing Palestinian‑Jordanian unity.  For many years, the PLO competed with Jordan over who represents the Palestinian Arabs. Only after Israel's weak response to the first "intifada" in 1987, and the subsequent strengthening of the PLO, which resulted in Israel viewing the PLO as the representative of the Palestinian Arabs, did Jordan withdraw from its connection with the "West Bank."

Genesis 36:8 So Esau dwelt in Mount Seir. Esau is Edom.  ( Mount Seir is east of the Jordan River and therefore it is in Jordan.) 

 

 What would Jordan gain from becoming part of the regional settlement?  

The current Jordanian regime is friendly to Israel and for the most part pro‑ Western.  Jordan's principal problems are economic:  1). It could be significantly strengthened by Israel and the United States in the context of a regional "Marshall Plan" integrated with the rebuilding of Iraq. 2). A comprehensive, internationally funded development plan for Jordan, most of whose territory is undeveloped, would facilitate the absorption and naturalization of the Arabs of Judea, Samaria and Gaza.  3).  The transfer to Jordan of significant portions of American military aid to the Middle East could significantly transform Jordan's economy.

 

 Assertion of sovereignty ‑ restoration of stability. 

The areas of Judea, Samaria and Gaza, including the eastern part of Jerusalem, were part of the British mandate territory that was intended for the establishment of the Jewish homeland. Since the end of the British mandate, these areas have not received any recognized legal status. They were annexed by Jordan after the War of Independence, but were never recognized as part of Jordan in international law. During the Six Day War in 1967, Israel liberated these territories and returned them to the Jewish people. Eastern Jerusalem was officially annexed to the State of Israel in 1981, but the status of the remainder of these areas remained unclear.

 Isaiah 33:20. Look upon Zion, the city of our appointed feasts; Your eyes will see Jerusalem, a quiet home, a tabernacle that will  not be taken down; nor one of its stakes will ever be removed, nor will any of its cords be broken."

 

 Judea and Samaria ‑ the cradle of Jewish civilization  

Judea and Samaria represent the historical "spinal cord" of the land of Israel. The central mountain range, whose heart is Jerusalem, reminds us of who we are. It was here that Abraham walked with his son, Isaac and here Jacob set up his tents. It was here that our forefathers, under Joshua, conquered this land by divine decree from the Canaanite nations.

Joshua 23:5 "And the Lord your God will expel them from before you and drive them out of your site. So you shall possess their land, as the Lord your God promised you."

Jerusalem ‑ the eternal capital of Israel, is surrounded on three sides by Judea and Samaria. Whoever is concerned for the future of Jerusalem ‑ and is aware of its centrality in the prophetic vision of the return to Zion ‑ cannot allow it to become once again a border settlement in the heart of hostile Arab land.

Zechariah 2:12 "And the Lord will take possession of Judah as His inheritance in the Holy Land, and will again choose Jerusalem."

 

 Dialogue between states: a positive dynamic 

The negotiations with the Hashemite Kingdom regarding the precise status of the residents of Judea, Samaria and Gaza will differ  from those conducted until today between Israel and the Palestinian Authority. When the two parties to discussions are sovereign nations, both of whom are interested in stability and peace, it is possible to reach a real solution. It is even possible to postpone some of the harder decisions for the future, with the confidence that a positive dynamic of cooperation and mutual interests will develop over the years. ... Israel is a true democracy, while the Hashemite Kingdom is a constitutional monarchy undergoing a process of democratization. It has one of the most progressive regimes in the Arab world, with a clearly pro‑Western orientation.

Proverbs 16:7 " When a man's ways please the Lord, He makes even his enemies to be at peace with him."

 

 The importance of resolving the refugee problem: 

The refugee problem in the Middle East has burgeoned into dangerous proportions, in sharp contrast with all other refugee populations from the 1940s, who were resettled and rehabilitated decades ago.  From a few hundred thousand Arab refugees in 1948, Palestinian refugees now number in the millions, including second and third generations. Their refugee status is...  the result of many years of neglect and lack of desire on the part of the Arab world to rehabilitate them. .. For many years the Arab world has done its best not to rehabilitate the refugees in order to undermine Israel's right to exist.  An important ingredient in the resolution of the refugee issue is predicated on international insistence on the need to rehabilitate the refugees and the reallocation of American foreign defense aid to the absorption of refugees.

The State of Israel absorbed millions of Jewish refugees from all over the world and, within a few years, these refugees became citizens of the state with full rights.  Almost one million of these refugees fled from Arab lands leaving behind property and wealth for which they were never compensated.   At the same time, the 1948 War of Independence created hundreds of thousands of Arab refugees who fled to Arab lands.  While the Jews displaced from Arab lands were rehabilitated and naturalized in Israel, the Arab countries refused to do the same for Arab refugees.

The resettlement of these refugees and their descendants will complete an historic circle of population exchange. This will result in the emergence of countries where the majority of their population shares a common nationality and culture.  Refugees from the War of Independence 1948:  600,000‑700,000 Arabs from Israel, 860,000 Jews from Arab countries 

Summary:

Have we (Christians who claim to love the Arabs and Muslims) been put in a position to change the Hand of God?  ( Exodus 32:14  "So the Lord relented from the harm which He said He would do.") When we look at the judgments stored up for the enemies of God, (Psalm 37, for example and a theme throughout the prophets), could we be reducing the severity of those judgments by supporting the above peace plan which aligns itself to Biblical mandates? God is ready, according to His Word, to destroy those who set themselves against Him.  Can we, the global Christian community,  by pressure applied to the US President and our Congress by a global groundswell of Zionist support, reduce the violence by relocating  the Palestinians,  as we pray for the salvation of the Arabs? ( Isaiah 19:19-25) Are we being given an opportunity to "move mountains"?