By ceding to public pressure from Barack Obama, Benjamin Netanyahu gives legitimacy to what is nothing more than a red herring.

Scarcely a week after President Obama deemed the construction of Israel's settlements "dangerous," Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu announced a ten-month halt to settlement construction in the West Bank.

Netanyahu's decision won early praise from Secretary of State Hillary Clinton and Middle East envoy George Mitchell. But the Palestinian Authority was unimpressed (naturally) and wants nothing short of a complete halt to any further settlement construction up to and including neighborhoods in East Jerusalem. If the Palestinians dig in their heels one must wonder if President Obama will bend to their will and bring more pressure to bear against Israel regarding settlements. 

One can make the case (as Israeli Foreign Minister Avigdor Lieberman has done) that Netanyahu's decision puts the ball in the court of the Palestinians. But the Palestinians have given no indication they are interested in playing ball with Israel. By ceding to public pressure from Obama, Netanyahu gives legitimacy to what is nothing more than a red herring. Netanyahu has given legitimacy to Obama's argument that the settlements are dangerous and an impediment to peace. But it's not about the settlements. It never has been and it never will be.

If it were about the settlements then why did the Palestinians escalate violence against Israel after unilaterally dismantling 21 settlements in the Gaza Strip in 2005? How can Israel be assured there won't be more Gilad Shalits if the settlements in the West Bank and East Jerusalem are dismantled? What assurance does Israel have there won't be rocket attacks emanating from Ramallah? Does President Obama honestly believe dismantling settlements will mollify the Palestinians one iota? If there were no more settlements you can be sure the Palestinians would find another grievance in their back pocket. To paraphrase the late Abba Eban, the Palestinians would never miss an opportunity to miss an opportunity.

As it stands now, the Palestinians have no reason to recognize the State of Israel much less return to the negotiating table, especially with Obama in the White House. With such intense pressure being brought to bear against Israel and no corresponding pressure being brought against the Palestinian Authority why should they do anything?  It is well worth remembering that President Obama delayed making a decision regarding the deployment of additional troops to Afghanistan in part because he was dissatisfied with last summer's election results. Yet Palestinian Authority President Mahmoud Abbas has postponed Palestinian elections indefinitely and Obama has not so much as raised an eyebrow. But that would have been meddling. Abbas can declare himself President for Life for all Obama cares.

Meanwhile, Netanyahu's decision has angered not only the settlers but members of his own cabinet. After all, when Ariel Sharon proceeded with dismantling settlements in Gaza it resulted in the splinter of the Likud Party and the birth of Kadima. In fact, Sharon would lose his Minister of Finance over his plan to evacuate the settlements.  That man was none other than Benjamin Netanyahu.

Not only did dismantling settlements in Gaza not bring about any peace for Israel they have gone to war in Gaza twice since then. The IDF went into Gaza after the kidnapping of Corporal Shalit in July 2006 and again in December 2008 after being barraged by persistent rocket attacks. Unsurprisingly, Israel was the subject of international condemnation for having the temerity to defend itself from this onslaught. So what exactly did Israel gain from dismantling settlements and evicting settlers? Not even bus fare.

One must then ask what Israel gains from this settlement freeze. At the very minimum, it is wasting its limited resources. Defense Minister Ehud Barak wants to enlist "green police" and park rangers as reinforcements over the strenuous objections of Gilan Erdan, the Minister of Environmental Protection. It should be noted that Erdan has been a vocal opponent of Netanyahu's new policy, describing it as "a severe violation of human rights." 

Does the Netanyahu government really want to see Israelis fighting one another again?  Does Netanyahu remember why he left Sharon's cabinet more than four years ago? Or does he have a short memory? Netanyahu should know better than anyone that pitting Israeli against fellow Israeli serves only the interests of those who wish to see Israel destroyed or at the very minimum severely weakened. So long as Netanyahu does the bidding of President Obama, Israel finds itself on very unsettled ground.