Who is Netanyahu kidding?

President Barack Obama’s cool congratulatory phone call to Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu on his re-election also delivered a stern message, a warning that the US will have to “reassess” its policy towards Israel in view of Netanyahu’s rejection of the two-state solution to his country’s conflict with the Palestinians.

What that reassessment means is a matter for conjecture, given the fact that Obama is now a lame duck president who might not want to burn all bridges with Israel, at least to not compromise the Democratic Party’s chances in the next presidential election.

While Obama’s statement is appreciated — the US should have long changed its policy of blind support for Israel in the face of the latter’s blatant violations of international law — the Arabs should not be blamed if they are sceptical.

They have witnessed for far too long the US’ unwillingness to be at least unbiased, let alone strict with Israel.

If threats to Israel were ever uttered, they were always hollow, never followed through.

Not even when, due to Israel’s acts, its interests were compromised and its people sacrificed did the US act decisively.

Not even the attack on USS Liberty in June 1967, which left 34 crew members dead, 171 injured and the ship severely damaged prompted Washington to review its policy on Israel, so what can one expect now, when many in the US Congress are clearly colluding with Israel against their own president?

Netanyahu, maybe aware of the brouhaha his pre-elections statements raised, is trying to bamboozle observers again, apparently backpedalling from his position regarding a Palestinian state, but those used to his doublespeak cannot be tricked into believing he has good intentions.

After securing re-election with the support of hard-line voters, Netanyahu is now saying that he is still committed to the two-state solution, provided that a Palestinian state will be demilitarised and recognise Israel as a Jewish state.

There is, no doubt, a long list of other caveats related, among others, to Palestinian refugees, East Jerusalem and the relation between the Palestinian Authority and Hamas, that will make it impossible to ever see that Palestinian state.

Netanyahu is playing games, not only with the Palestinians but also with his own people, with his country’s chief ally, the US, and with the entire world, and getting away with it.

So what state are we talking about?