NATO FORCE IN JUDEA AND SAMARIA?

Candidate for U.S. National Security Adviser Wants NATO Force in West Bank - Aluf BennGen. James Jones, who is expected to become Obama's national security adviser, supports the deployment of an international force in the West Bank instead of the Israel Defense Forces. He also opposes Israel's demand to retain extensive security control over the territories even after a Palestinian state is established. Jones served as Secretary of State Rice's special envoy for Israeli-Palestinian security issues over the past year, tasked with formulating security arrangements between Israel and the future Palestinian state. Israel has proposed security arrangements which recognize that its major population centers are vulnerable to rocket and suicide attacks from the West Bank, and that security control of the Jordan Valley is essential to prevent weapons from being smuggled into the West Bank. Israel also demands complete demilitarization of the future Palestinian state, Israeli control of border crossings, and Israeli early warning stations in the mountains. (Ha'aretz) See also Report: Gen. Jones Drafted Report Critical of Israel - Hilary Leila KriegerGen. Jones was reported to have drafted a report critical of some aspects of Israel's security stance toward the Palestinians, but the report was never published. (Jerusalem Post) See also Gen. Jones' Main Tasks - Steve CollThere are three unglamorous tasks that Obama's national-security team absolutely must deliver on: They must keep al-Qaeda on its heels and off our soil; they must prevent Iraq from blowing up; and they must prevent Afghanistan from blowing up. These are projects Jones understands and for which he has considerable pragmatic experience. (New Yorker)