Of homes and humanity

JONATHAN FRIENDLY

Ariel Sharon has said that when he moves all 7,500 Israeli settlers out of the Gaza Strip he will destroy their homes rather than allow them to fall into the hands of the Palestinians. There ought to be a more constructive approach to the problem.

Of course, the plan may never be carried out. Sharon has agreed to put the matter to a binding referendum within his Likud Party, and he could certainly be voted down on the proposal. Additionally, he faces the possibility of a criminal indictment in connection with his son Gilad's business dealings with a real estate developer.

Still, getting out of Gaza makes long-range sense, with or without offsetting concessions from the Palestinians. While the security fence around Gaza has largely ended the worst of the terror strikes from that area against Green Line Israel, a majority of Israelis have concluded that the cost of defending the settlements in terms of manpower and money is far higher than the benefits of any "Greater Israel" aspirations.

The great fear is that with-drawing the settlers and the military presence could leave the field open to a surging Hamas movement, the implacable enemy of the Jewish State, to replace the Palestinian Authority in Gaza. And you can bet that the leadership of Hamas and other terror groups will celebrate the withdrawal as a sign of Israeli weakness in the face of suicide bombers. The assassination of Hamas leader Ahmed Yassin will not blunt the Palestinian cheers nor the Hamas bid for a larger Gaza role.

The question is whether leaving the evacuated housing intact will help or hurt Israel in the long run. If the properties can be turned over in some sensible ways, the process could be a positive one.

Israel would be wise to challenge the international community, possibly through the United Nations, to come up with a fair process that uses the homes to help with the real problems of sheltering the truly needy among the 1.3 million Palestinians in Gaza. Working with whatever effective moderates can be found in or out of the Palestinian Authority, a global agency should be able to find a formula for progress that does not look as if it were dictated by Israel or the United States.

One possibility might be to set a value on the homes and then use it as a credit against whatever reparations Israel eventually agrees to pay under a permanent peace agreement that recognizes both the displacement of Pale-stinians in 1948 and the fact that they are not going to enjoy any substantial "right of return." Treat-ing the ending of the settlements as essentially an eco-nomic process would lower the emotional elements of the shift for both the settlers and the Palestinians. The plan should also include a U.N. statement re-cognizing the Israeli withdrawal, something that would reinforce its legitimacy to the Arab states.

The Palestinians who have been so badly misled by Yasser Arafat and other terrorists deserve some sympathy. Finding a creative way to get the settlers' homes into the hands of peace-seeking Gaza citizens would send a positive message about Israel's hopes for the future. However, what we don't want to see is the properties to fall into the control of Hamas.

Jonathan Friendly is contributing editor for Jewish Renaissance Media.

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