Annapolis Conference

Tomorrow marks the start of that highly anticipated conference in Annapolis—it’s essentially an attempt to breathe some life back into the Middle East peace process through a sit-down between Israeli and Palestinian-Arab representatives, all with the U.S. acting as the mediator. Honestly, though, looking at the landscape, it feels like this meeting might be doomed from the jump. With the current administration entering its final year, they just don't have much political leverage left to actually force anyone's hand toward a resolution. On top of that, the Palestinians are completely fractured, both ideologically and geographically—Hamas is already threatening rocket fire if any deal is struck. Even on the Israeli side, things are shaky; Ehud Olmert is in a weak position, especially with Ehud Barak breathing down his neck. I suppose getting Syria and Saudi Arabia to agree to show up is a win in itself, but it's a tall order given that Iran has already branded the whole thing a Zionist conspiracy—and you can bet Hezbollah and Hamas are right there with them.
What kind of outcomes are you all expecting here?
In short, are you betting on success or failure?

At the very least, we should get a look at how they're actually "breathing."

Benjamin Gonzalez said:Tomorrow marks the start of that highly anticipated conference in Annapolis—it’s essentially an attempt to breathe some life back into the Middle East peace process through a sit-down between Israeli and Palestinian-Arab representatives, all with the U.S. acting as the mediator. Honestly, though, looking at the landscape, it feels like this meeting might be doomed from the jump. With the current administration entering its final year, they just don't have much political leverage left to actually force anyone's hand toward a resolution. On top of that, the Palestinians are completely fractured, both ideologically and geographically—Hamas is already threatening rocket fire if any deal is struck. Even on the Israeli side, things are shaky; Ehud Olmert is in a weak position, especially with Ehud Barak breathing down his neck. I suppose getting Syria and Saudi Arabia to agree to show up is a win in itself, but it's a tall order given that Iran has already branded the whole thing a Zionist conspiracy—and you can bet Hezbollah and Hamas are right there with them.
What kind of outcomes are you all expecting here?
In short, are you betting on success or failure?

Look, this isn't the first conference destined to crash and burn. Even with those Arab politicians showing up to play pretend, I’d say failure is a 100% certainty. You want to know why? Because none of those Arab leaderships actually give a damn about their own people—they're too busy choosing the West and Israel over everything else.

There’s no peace coming until Israel is gone from the face of the earth.

An absolute failure. Without Iran and Hezbollah involved... you're basically just looking at a bunch of chickens in a coop. It’s like when the head farmer was lecturing them and the hens were just staring blankly—that's your idea of "success."

Mahmoud Abbas lacks any real credibility, and I guess peace was never actually on the table for Israel anyway...

I’ll quote what plenty of Muslim leaders who won't even show up to these conferences—acting like nothing more than sold-out Zionist puppets—have said: "This whole conference is just about building Walls, not helping Palestinians." ☕
The fake smiles are gone and the mask has slipped. The agony continues for the Palestinians, just like it does for us Americans. The Palestinians have one massive advantage: they're surrounded by a Muslim community, no matter how flawed it might be. Meanwhile, we're stuck surrounded mostly by enemies of Islam.

David Newman50 said:An absolute failure. Without Iran and Hezbollah involved... you're basically just looking at a bunch of chickens in a coop. It’s like when the head farmer was lecturing them and the hens were just staring blankly—that's your idea of "success."

I'm right there with you!
The real issue is that the West isn't willing to let Iran officially take the lead in reshaping the Middle East.

Best, Numen

Adding to what David Newman50 posted, check out this statement from Ehud Olmert. He’s clearly reacting to those massive protests happening in Israel over the negotiations. His take? A Palestinian state has to happen, because without one, neither side is going to survive. 👍Finally, someone is actually saying it—if they keep pushing this "ten for one" policy, they're digging their own graves. Plus, with Iran knocking on the door, it's better to take the win we can get right now than chase a fantasy later.