The West Bank model

At the beginning of Israel’s action in Gaza many claimed that it would bring down the more moderate Fatah-run Palestinian Authority on the West Bank. But it has not. Walter Isaacson of the US Palestinian partnership tells Jeffrey Goldberg that it is because the Palestinians on the West Bank can see what peace would bring that things have remained relatively quiet:

 “There has been double-digit growth in the economy, and people have a stake in the future because of what Salam Fayyad and others have done to improve conditions there,” Walter said. “And Israelis have responded by encouraging economic development. I think that people in the West Bank have a clear sense of what peace would bring them, and that’s a prosperous state.” 

As Goldberg comments, “What was true before the Gaza incursion remains true now: The best hope for a two-state solution is a vibrant West Bank that could serve as a role model for the people of Gaza.”