Weekly Commentary: Destroying terror infrastructure better compliance test than stopping incitement

Dr. Aaron Lerner
IMRA
20 August 2009

Stopping Palestinian incitement against Israel and destroying the terror infrastructure are both important Palestinian obligations. But it would be a serious mistake on Israel's part on all counts if it opted to focus on Palestinian incitement as the primary test of Palestinian compliance.

Don't get me wrong. Palestinian incitement against Israel serves to not only poison the atmosphere today but also plants the seeds for yet another generation of Palestinians brainwashed against co-existence.

It is important to shame the Palestinian media, education system and other platforms for Palestinian incitement and efforts in this field certainly deserve our praise and support.

But years of Oslo have taught us that "incitement" isn't a workable compliance test.

#1. Over a decade of various Palestinian-Israeli committee meetings have yet to come up with a robust and readily applicable definition of incitement.

#2. There is no agreed way to measure or rank the severity of different "incitements" (something that is a function, among other things, of not only the content of the incitements but also the identities of the inciters and the venues of the incitements).

As a result, the determination of compliance (in particular, when compliance is judged on a comparative rather than absolute basis) is readily susceptible to self serving manipulation and distortion.

Put in simple English: If the Netanyahu team focuses on incitement as the test of Palestinian compliance they will ultimately find themselves being told by Washington that the Palestinians have kept their part of the bargain - regardless of what horrific evidence PMW and others come up with to the contrary.

In sharp contrast, it is possible to come up with a schedule of readily observable terror infrastructure destroying activities for the Palestinians to carry out as well as indicators of the continued existence of a terror infrastructure.

Hint: "Moderate" Fatah's own armed militias are part of the terror infrastructure and PLO Conference declarations notwithstanding, the Palestinians are obligated to permanently close them down along with all the other militias.

Again: Ending the poisonous Palestinian incitement against Israel would make a vital contribution to long term stability. But it would be a terrible mistake to focus on Palestinian incitement as the primary test of Palestinian compliance.
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