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PAUL JOHNSON:
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Settlements for suicides

I never believed in the Oslo Accords and it is now clear they have been a failure, merely exacerbating the conflict between Israelis and Arabs. Negotiations are pointless unless both sides want a solution. The Israelis do. The Arabs do not.

The Israelis want a place in the Middle East acknowledged by the Arabs as their historical right. The Arabs will not accord Israel such a place, and their idea of an agreement is one which furthers their ultimate aim of defeating the Israeli armed forces, extinguishing Israel as a state and exterminating its citizens.

No doubt millions of ordinary Arabs would be happy with a peace which left Israel intact, but their leaders have always looked for a "final solution."

Arab terrorism has so far succeeded in the sense that is has led the West to put pressure on Israel to negotiate - and negotiations have always worked against Israel's security interests.

I suggest that Israel reverse the process. Every time the terrorists stage a suicide bombing which kills Israeli citizens, the Israeli authorities should allow another settlement to establish itself in the disputed territories. This form of punishment is likely to be even more effective than targeting terrorist leaders.

Important though it is to bring those who plan mass killing of the innocent to justice, it is still more important to demonstrate to the Arab people that terrorism, far from weakening Israel, will expand its borders and deepen its roots.

The writer is a historian and essayist.