CAMERA’s Israel office yesterday prompted United Press International to correct an article which erroneously reported that Israel has long opposed to the two-state solution.
The Aug. 26 article, “Biden postpones first meeting with Bennett after Afghanistan blasts,” had inaccurately reported: “Also, Biden favors a two-state Israeli-Palestinian solution,which has long been opposed by Israel.” (Emphasis added.)
While Prime Minister Bennett opposes a two-state solution, the claim that Israel “has long opposed” the two-state solution is not correct. Israel’s acceptance of multiple peace deals that would have enabled a Palestinian state underscores the fact that Israel has a long history of accepting the two-state solution. The Jewish leadership of the Yishuv in Mandate Palestineaccepted the two-state solution in 1947, agreeing to the United Nations’ Partition Plan.
Likewise, at Camp David in 2000, at Taba in 2001 and at the Annapolis Conference in 2008, the Israeli government agreed to peace proposals which would have seen the formation of a Palestinian state.
The Israeli government accepted numerous two-state proposals, while the Palestinians consistently rejected them.
As for the current government, while Prime Minister Bennett is opposed, alternate Prime Minister Lapid is in favor of the two-state solution.
Following communication with CAMERA, editors commendably removed the inaccurate assertion that Israel has long opposed a two-state solution. The article now states: “Also, Biden favors a two-state Israeli-Palestinian solution.”
Contrary to common journalistic practice, UPI did not append a note to the article alerting readers to the change.