The complete idiot’s guide to Mideast peace – part 166

Obama: US using all means to get Israel-Gaza ceasefire | The Times of Israel  ‘American president reiterates Israel’s right to defend itself, laments civilian deaths’

But even if a proper ceasefire is agreed upon, what can guarantee to keep it in place when the slightest wrong word, move or minor incident can so easily threaten to restart hostilities and yet another round of newly-minted combat is initiated? Stability in the region will still be far too fragile for any long-term prospects of genuine peace to take hold.

Much like building a tall concrete structure in an area prone to occasional earth tremors, doing so without a latticework of steel reinforcing rods is just asking for trouble.

But how can structural integrity be added to something previously erected with virtually none at all? Normally such a task is undertaken at the very beginning of construction; retrofitting the material at any later stage might easily demand a complete rebuild of the entire project.

Could much the same procedure now be applied to that of the Israeli-Palestinian conflict? Only by factoring in measures that massively strengthen the framework of the next real ceasefire can confidence in a peaceful settlement ever reach levels where the outcome is certain and that certainty becomes absolute.

www.laxiankey.com – ‘ for those of us with better things to do.’

Perhaps not exactly a complete rebuild but something damn near like it.