When Arabs -- including Palestinians -- dream of a better life - by Bassam Tawil

The $50 billion dollars the Trump plan offered the Palestinians will end up being withheld because Palestinian leaders have something else on their minds: to continue enriching their own bank accounts at the expense of their people. No wonder, then, that when Arabs -- including Palestinians -- dream of a better life, they often dream of moving to Israel. No wonder, as well, that most Arab Israelis do not want to become part of a Palestinian state, and have been demanding to stay in Israel.

Bassam Tawil..
Gatestone Institute..
23 February '20..

Palestinians living under the Palestinian Authority (PA) in the West Bank and Hamas in the Gaza Strip can only dream about the quality of life their Arab brethren enjoy in Israel.

Thanks to the current leaders in the PA and Hamas, the Palestinian people are sunk in abysmal living conditions. Poverty, unemployment, and repression have been their lot for decade after decade. This is because the PA and Hamas have repeatedly rejected peace plans that offer prosperity to the Palestinians.

Recently, the PA and Hamas rejected US President Donald Trump's plan for Mideast peace, which includes a $50 billion investment and infrastructure proposal to create at least a million new jobs for Palestinians. The plan calls for projects worth $27.5 billion in the West Bank and Gaza Strip and $9.1 billion for Palestinians in Egypt, Jordan and Lebanon. Projects "envisioned include those in the health care, education, power, water, high-tech, tourism, and agriculture sectors."

Palestinian leaders, however, have said "no" to the Trump plan, and dubbed it an "American-Zionist conspiracy to liquidate the Palestinian issue and Palestinian people's rights."

These leaders, who rejected the Trump plan even before they saw it, clearly care nothing for the well-being of their people. By refusing the $50 billion offer, Palestinian leaders have again proven that they prefer to see their people continue to live in poverty and misery than accept a proposal to fund various economic projects and provide jobs for the many unemployed Palestinians. The real losers of the Palestinian leaders' inveterate rejectionism are, tragically, the Palestinian people.

Meanwhile, there are other Arabs in the region who are more fortunate than the Palestinians of the West Bank and Gaza Strip: the Arab citizens of Israel. These citizens are lucky that they do not live under the rule of the corrupt and incompetent leaders of the PA and Hamas. These Arab citizens are fortunate because they live in Israel.

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