In Saturday’s paper there was an article from the AP entitled “Israel will curb West Bank construction ‘when possible’.” I suppose Israel’s takeover of the West Bank is becoming a bit of an embarrassment, hence this meaningless concession from the expansionist government of Benjamin Netanyahu.

Israel has for years now been carrying out a colonization of the West Bank, sending in colonists to create new settlements in the wilderness. Of course, as in the case of American colonization, the wilderness is populated by natives. Wholesale relocation of Palestinian populations has been tried, but usually has awkward consequences. So the plan is to build settlements of Israelis newly arrived from the United States in sufficient number that at some point a claim can be made that there is an Israeli majority on the West Bank and/or that there is an Israeli minority in Palestinian lands that Israel must protect.  Then Israel will declare itself the “protector” of the West Bank Jews, and make Israeli annexation of the West Bank a pre-condition of any peace agreement in the area.