September 13 marks the 30th anniversary of the signing of the Oslo Accords. The purpose of the
Oslo Accords was to create a Palestinian State to the so-called West Bank.
We asked our friend, a Palestinian businessman, if he celebrates the anniversary. ”No", he said. ”The Oslo Accords is dead.”
10 years ago, this gifted businessman happily supported the idea of the Palestinian state.
Then came ISIS. The businessman was horrified by the news of ISIS and said that if the Israeli army would not protect the "West Bank", nothing would protect them against such terror.
Then came the COVID. He saw how the Israeli government tried to protect its citizens from the disease, while at the same time the Palestinian Authority did nothing for the Palestinians. The interest to come under Israeli rule was great.
At the beginning of 2023, a new Israeli government came to power. It has given a fairly free hand to the Jews who seek to settle Samaria and Judea. Among other things, the Jewish village of Homesh in Samaria, which had already been demolished, is being rebuilt. Now he fails to trust Israel either.
”I see the future black. I don't know what will happen to my children.”
Even if the Oslo agreement has failed in its purpose, it has greatly affected the everyday life on the so-called West Bank. For example, the Oslo Accords separated the Jews and Palestinians from each other by dividing the land to A, B and C areas.
In the daily life it means that the Jews cannot enter the Palestinian villages, neither can the Palestinians enter the Jewish villages without permission. Our Jewish neighbor told once that he cannot meet his best friend, who happens to be a Palestinian. They still keep in touch, but they don't have any place to meet each other.
Another example is the hate education in the Palestinian schools. A man grown up in the Palestinian refugee camp near Nablus told us that it started after the Oslo Accords. If you want to instill fear and hatred, your neighbor must be unfamiliar. The education in the Palestinian schools is funded by European countries like Finland.
Although the Oslo Accords is dead, this mess it brought to the area is still here. What would happen if someone dared to make an end to this mess?
Bassem Eid, a Palestinian ex-refugee we interviewed some years ago, said the Israeli-Palestinian conflict has two owners. The sooner third parties take their hands off, the sooner the Israeli-Palestinian conflict would be resolved.