\n In an interview with FRANCE 24, Ami Ayalon, former head of Israel’s domestic intelligence agency Shin Bet, warned that Israel is “heading to apartheid” unless it divides the land with the Palestinians. He argued that “there is a limit to what we can achieve by the use of military power” in Iran and that without “an agreement with the Palestinian people”, there can be no stability in the Middle East. <\/p>\n
The former head of the Shin Bet intelligence agency and former commander of the Israeli navy pointed out that Israel is\u00a0fighting simultaneously on five fronts: “in Iran<\/a>, in Gaza<\/a>\u00a0in Lebanon<\/a>, in the West Bank<\/a> and in Syria<\/a>“.<\/p>\n “There is a limit to what we can achieve by the use of military power,” Ayalon said, adding that he does not believe Israel has “the ability to end the war” in Iran<\/a> without resorting to what he calls “smart power”\u00a0\u2013 “a combination of military power and statesmanship or diplomacy<\/a>.”<\/p>\n ‘Most Israelis do not see Palestinians as a people’ <\/p>\n Asked about the steps taken by the current Israeli government in the West Bank\u00a0\u2013 including allowing the purchase of private land and expanding Israeli authority over Palestinian infrastructure\u00a0\u2013 Ayalon said he “totally agreed” with the assessment that they amount to a march towards full annexation. “Most Israelis do not see Palestinians as a people,” he noted, warning that the Israeli government intends “to annex all the West Bank<\/a> and Gaza.”<\/p>\n Ayalon argued that without the recognition of the Palestinian people, no lasting peace<\/a> is possible: “Unless we shall be able to come to an agreement with the Palestinian people, we shall not be able to create stability in the Middle East<\/a>.”<\/p>\n “If we shall not divide this piece of land (between Israelis and Palestinians), we are heading to apartheid<\/a>,” he declared.<\/p>\n