On the surface the UN peacekeepers sounds good. Have a neutral force separate the parties, let things calm down, resolve the issues. Sort of like a referee in boxing.

A few thoughts. One, when that happens, as Buck Galaxy says, the settlements are still on Palestinian territory.

Two, the Israeli Army would certainly have to protect them.

Three, does the UN then deploy on Palestinian territory between the Palestinians and the Israeli Army protecting the Israeli settlements?

Remember, those settlements the UN would be protecting are on Palestinian territory contrary to UN resolution? In that case the UN would be enforcing the process which the UN has condemned, unless there was a provision for dismantling them.

Or does the UN NOT deploy to protect those settlements? Would anyone reasonably expect the Israelis to leave them unprotected? I wouldn't. Would the Israeli Army fight it's way through the UN force to protect those settlements? Yep. I would if I were Israeli.

It would seem that anyone coming in would need to bring some moving vans, too. Then they would have to surround the settlements to isolate them from both the Israeli Army and Palestinian forces, move everyone to Israeli territory, and take up a position along the legitimate border. That, by the way, would mean invading Israel, if only for a couple of hundred meters.

I doubt if any UN force is willing to do that. And Israel won't move the settlements short of force unless

THE US AGREES TO BUY THE VILLAGES, RECONSTRUCT THEM ON ISRAELI TERRITORY AND COMPENSATE THE ISRAELIS FOR MOVING BACK.

I think something on that order has been suggested in the past.

And even so, you will have the memory of the Israeli brutality burned into Palestinian minds for a long, long time. A very long time. I just don't think it's like football, where you blow the whistle and it all stops, nothing personal. I think if I were Palestinian I'd have trouble accepting what has happened.

I would if I were Israeli, too, but there are far fewer Israelis deeply and personally affected. (I know, ALL of them are, but there are far fewer casualties.)

I think there will have to be a resolution forced upon the parties, and that the Palestinian response to what has happened will continue for years. Some Irish still hate some English, and that's been over for a while.

Arf