Two interesting facts
Naguib Mahfouz
I am very concerned with what is going on in Israel. Two facts in particular have forced me to reflect. One is a recent opinion poll revealing 56 per cent of Israelis disapprove of Sharon's policy.
The second fact is the increase in the number of Israelis seeking to leave the country and emigrate elsewhere. It is well known that the rates of emigration from Israel to the US are higher than those from the US to Israel. Recently, though, I read that seven per cent of the Israeli population is now in the process of moving from Israel.
These two facts not only underline the Israeli government's failure to provide Israelis with the security it promised, they represent the unequivocal failure of the Zionist project. Israel has often gone through difficult times in the past but it has never failed to keep its citizens within its borders.
What, I wonder, will Arabs do with these two facts, and how will they exploit them in the service of resolving the Arab-Israeli conflict?
Based on an interview by Mohamed Salmawy
