World
For Palestinians, Israel’s Election Offers Bleak Horizon
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu speaks to his Likud party members during a campaign event near Tel Aviv, Israel, Monday, Feb. 9, 2015. (AP Photo/Ariel Schalit)
(YNet News) – As Israelis prepare to elect a new government next week, the view from the Palestinian territories in the West Bank and Gaza is not one of hope.
The decades-old conflict has barely featured in the campaign, leaving Palestinians with the sense that whether Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu secures a fourth term in office or the center-left opposition pulls off a victory, as the latest polls suggest, little is likely to change.
Peace talks broke down in April 2014, after nine months of negotiations led by the United States, with the long-standing goal of a two-state solution – Israel and an independent Palestine side-by-side – no closer.
“The two-state solution is no longer on the table,” said Gaza-based political analyst Talal Okal.
“Israel is moving towards isolating and confiscating all of Jerusalem,” he said, while Gaza, a 40-km-long strip of land on the Mediterranean coast, remains blockaded by Israel and Egypt, the movement of people and goods closely monitored.
