Anything is better than the status quo in Israel

The attorney general in Israel has decided to bring the charge of corruption against Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu after a long period of procrastination. These charges include receiving bribes, fraud and other corruption violations.

This belated decision by the Israeli attorney general promises to bring down Netanyahu and end his long rule. Ending the "reign" of Netanyahu can open a rare window of opportunity to breathe life into the stalled peace process between Israel and the Palestinians.

The Israeli prime minister has effectively closed all doors for resuming peace talks with the Palestinians for many years. The downfall of Netanyahu could very well mean the resumption of peace negotiations with the Palestinian side, even though one cannot be so sure yet.

It is one thing to resume peace talks and quite another to bring them to fruition. It is going to take more than changing the leadership in Israel to solve the Palestinian conflict, but any change in the leadership of the country can still be the beginning.

There are now new faces on the Israeli political screen who promise moderation in the Israeli stance on the Palestinian case, and some of them enjoy more moderate views on the fundamentals regarding the final shape of a peace deal with the Palestinians.

That said, the Arab world in general, and the Palestinians in particular, have long noted that no matter who rules Israel, the outcome as far they are concerned remains the same. The history of the Palestinian conflict is more than half a century long, during which period the Israeli political landscape changed from one extreme to another, without much difference to the Palestinian case.

Yet, anything is better than the status quo in Israel and a change of leadership could be a welcome step. To be sure, there had been occasions in the past when peace talks had progressed to an advanced stage. One can cite the examples of Israeli prime ministers Yitzhak Rabin (1992-1995), Ehud Barak (1999-2001) and Ehud Olmert (2006-2009), and there is hope that this time also a change of leadership in Israel can, indeed, bring new momentum to the stalled peace talks between the two sides.