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| Part of a series on theIsraeli–Palestinian conflict | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Israeli–Palestinian peace process | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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History
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Proposals
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TheRealignment plan (Hebrew:תוכנית ההתכנסות,romanized: Tokhnit Ha'Hitkansot;Arabic:خطة إعادة التنظيم,romanized: Khutat 'Iieadat Altanzim), originally dubbed theconvergence plan, was a proposal byIsrael to unilaterally disengage from 90% of theWest Bank and annex the rest, incorporating mostIsraeli settlements into Israel. The plan was formulated and introduced to the Israeli public by then actingprime minister,Ehud Olmert, in a number of media interviews during the election campaign for the 17thKnesset in March 2006.[1]
The Convergence Plan was originally scheduled to be implemented within 18 months from early May 2006, but in November 2007, Olmert said that he hoped to implement it within three to four years.[1] Opinion polling found that the proposal was unpopular among the Israeli public.[2]
The outlines of the plan comprised:[1]
According to the plan,Israeli settlements in 90% of theWest Bank would be evacuated and dismantled. The area of evacuation would largely correspond to the area east of the route of theWest Bank barrier that was begun under Olmert's predecessor,Ariel Sharon, or a similar route with national consent and international legitimization.The large Israeli settlement blocs near theGreen Line would be annexed to Israel, and the approximately 40,000 residents of the evacuated settlements would be resettled there. During the campaign for the March 2006 election, Sharon was still officially prime minister, but unable to carry out his duties, to communicate or to run in the election due to the major stroke that he suffered on 4 January 2006. Olmert, who became acting prime minister andKadima party leader after Sharon's stroke, stated that in pursuing a realignment of settlements, he was operating in Sharon's spirit, and that if Sharon had been able to continue carrying out his duties, he would have acted in a similar way.
After the2006 Lebanon War, Olmert announced to his cabinet that the plan to dismantle some Jewish settlements in the West Bank and unilaterally redraw Israel's borders would not be implemented for the time being.[3] The plan was not revived prior to Olmert's departure from office on 31 March 2009 and the subsequentLikud-led coalition governments have not pursued similar policies. Olmert's successorsTzipi Livni andShaul Mofaz are also opposed to the proposals.
In July 2007, then Israeli deputy prime ministerHaim Ramon proposed a smaller-scale realignment plan, in which Israel would disengage from 70% of the West Bank, and evacuate settlements in the area of withdrawal, mainly isolated communities.[4]
Although the Hebrew name of the plan did not change, the English name rapidly changed from "convergence" to "consolidation" and finally to "realignment", according to theWashington Times[5] and the "language maven"William Safire.[6]
New HistorianIlan Pappé noted that "hitkansut" (the Hebrew word used for the plan) most aptly translates as "ingathering". Pappé said that the plan was designed to address the "demographic threat" posed by Palestinian population growth to the maintenance of a "Jewish state", by leaving several populous Palestinian areas outside direct Israeli control.[7]
In September 2008, Olmert made a comprehensive plan as a secret offer to Palestinian PresidentMahmoud Abbas, which would have had Israel annexing just 6.3% of the West Bank, and the implementation of a five-nation trusteeship for theHoly Basin surrounding the Old City of Jerusalem. Olmert asked Abbas if he could immediately accept the plan, which he said he was not able to do without further study.[8] The proposal was ultimately never implemented.[9]
In two polls of Israeli opinion on the plan conducted on behalf of theYisrael Beiteinu political party, some 70% of respondents said that they were opposed to the plan. The polls also revealed that some 65-70% of those who backed Israel's disengagement from Gaza in 2005 opposed the plan.[2]
Palestinian Authority presidentMahmoud Abbas opposed the plan, and called on all Arab states to oppose it, stating that "we are working to get Olmert's plan off the table". Jordanian kingAbdullah II and Egyptian presidentHosni Mubarak released a joint statement expressing opposition to "unilateral Israeli steps" and that "every step should be carried out through direct negotiations with the Palestinian side and in accordance with theRoad Map, which leads to a sustainable Palestinian state alongside Israel", following a meeting inSharm el-Sheikh.[10]
TheEuropean Union opposed the plan, stating that it would not recognize any unilateral border changes that were not agreed upon in negotiations, although the EU External Relations Commissioner said that it was a "courageous idea".[11][12]
In 2006, it was reported that theGeorge W. Bushadministration reacted positively to the proposal, but did not explicitly endorse it in talks with Olmert and his government.[13]