Uri Avnery's Column 

A perfectly mutual reciprocity


Translated from 06/Aug/98 Ma'ariv

The Prime Minister demands reciprocity. The extreme Right demands reciprocity. Yahalom, Ze'evi, and Porat all demand reciprocity. I, too, am in favor of reciprocity, all the way. Some suggestions along these lines:

  • The Palestinian Authority will extradite to Israel all those Palestinians who have killed or wounded Israelis. The Israeli government will extradite to the Palestinians all those Israelis who have killed or wounded Palestinians, including settlers, soldiers and members of the Border Police.
  • Alternatively: The Palestinians will not keep in jail any Israeli who has acted out of nationalist motives. Israel will not keep in jail any Palestinian who has acted out of nationalist motives.
  • Palestinian police and military will not detain Israeli citizens. If any Israeli citizen should be detained on Palestinian territory on suspicion of having committed a criminal act, he is to be turned over to Israeli police within an hour. Israeli police and military will not detain Palestinian citizens. If any Palestinian citizen should be detained on Israeli territory on suspicion of having committed a criminal act, he is to be turned over to Palestinian police within an hour.
  • The Palestinian Authority will destroy the Palestinian terror infrastructure. The Israeli government will destroy the Israeli terror infrastructure. Hamas members will not be arrested and released via the revolving-door system. Kach members will not be arrested and released via the revolving-door system. Grave sites of Palestinian terrorists will not be turned into shrines for pilgrimage. Grave sites of Israeli terrorists, such as Baruch Goldstein, will not be turned into shrines for pilgrimage.
  • Israeli security will be posted at every Palestinian border crossing to ensure that no Palestinian terrorists are allowed to cross over. Palestinian security will be posted at all Israeli border crossings to ensure that no Jewish terrorists are allowed to cross over.
  • All property in East Jerusalem which was owned by Jews prior to 1948

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shall be returned to its owners or their heirs. For example: Ras Al-Amud. All property in West Jerusalem which was owned by Arabs prior to 1948 shall be returned to its owners or their heirs. For example: Katamon, Talbiyeh, Liftah, Dir Yassin and Sheikh Bader (the Knesset site).

  • All the lands and homes in the territory beyond the Green Line which were in Jewish possession prior to 1948 should be returned to the Jews. For example: Property in Hebron, Gush Etzion, Beit-Ha'Aravah, etc. All the lands and homes inside the Green Line which were in Arab possession prior to 1948 should be returned to their rightful owners. For example: property in Haifa, Jaffa, Safad, Tiberias, Ashkelon, Be'er Sheva, Ramleh, Lod, etc.
  • The PLO leadership will recognize the right of Jews to return to Israel. The Israeli government will recognize the right of Palestinians to return to Palestine.
  • The Palestinian Authority will guarantee that no individual who negates the Oslo Accords shall be permitted to express these opinions via any Palestinian media. For example: Sheikh Yassin. The Israeli government will guarantee that no individual who negates the Oslo Accords shall be permitted to express these opinions via any Israeli media. For example: Benny Begin and Benny Eilon. This prohibition will apply to all newspapers, radio and TV stations and on the internet as well.
  • The Israeli government will have the right to supervise all Palestinian school curriculae, from kindergarten through university, in order to ensure that none contain material contradictory to the reconciliation of the two peoples. The Palestinian Authority will have the right to supervise all Israeli school curriculae, from kindergarten through university, including the state-religious and the orthodox education systems, in order to ensure that none contain material contradictory to the reconciliation of the two nations.
  • Israeli inspectors will ensure that no sermons against Jews are preached in Palestinian mosques. Palestinian inspectors will ensure that no sermons against Arabs, Moslems and Christians are preached in Jewish synagogues.
  • The PLO wil convene the Palestinian National Council and will finally abolish the paragraphs in the Palestinian Convention stating that all of Palestine belongs to the Palestinian people. The Knesset will convene and finally abolish all of the biblical passages which state that all the land between the Nile and the Euphrates rivers belongs to the Jewish people.

Then the Redeemer shall come to Zion and Palestine.