Middle East Solution

By Nancy Farrell

I have been back in Burlington for only three days from a trip to our sister city, Bethlehem, in the West Bank. The violence and suffering are accelerating.

I have an idea. Have the United Nations send skilled mediators to Jerusalem immediately. Have Arafat and a representative from each militant faction of the Palestinian Authority go to a hotel to join Sharon, Netanyahu and a balanced representative from the Knesset. Put all the leaders under curfew, which means that they are not permitted to leave the premises for any reason, except to purchase food for two hours a day. Water and electricity would be turned off, except for two hours a day. Tanks would patrol the area 24 hours a day, shooting at any age citizen on the street during curfew.

Leaders and mediators must remain under curfew until Israeli-Palestinian boundaries are reset. The $3 billion the United States gives Israel annually could be diverted from military purposes to purchasing houses from settlers and returning the land to Palestine.

Impossible? What's impossible is the situation as it now exists. The suffering, fear and injustice must be addressed.

Nancy Farrell
Burlington, VT

Photo credits: Photos courtesy Ben Scribner, International Solidarity Movement