May 15 2008
Israel at 60, resolution far away
By Daoud Kuttab
As the state of Israel celebrates its 60th birthday, Palestinians remember the naqba, or “catastrophe” – their story of dispossession, occupation, and statelessness. But, for both sides, as well as external powers, the events of 1948 and what has followed – the occupation since June 1967 of the remaining lands of historic Palestine – represents a tragic failure.
Israel is most at fault for this failure, owing to its continued military occupation and illegal settlements. Despite paying lip service to peace, the Israeli refusal to leave the Occupied Territories continues to be in direct contravention to what the preamble to United Nations Security Council Resolution 242 termed the “inadmissible taking of land by force.”
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