Peaceful Illusions

President Bush became the first U.S. president in nearly a decade to visit Palestinian territory Thursday and promptly predicted that a deal can be reached within a year to turn it into a state. Standing beneath a portrait of Yasser Arafat, the late Palestinian leader who is buried nearby, an enthusiastic Bush said Israel and the Palestinian Authority should be able to reach a peace agreement with his help.

• JJ Commentary: Unfortunately, President Bush has shown little appreciation for the underlying roots of the Middle East conflict. He is more interested in his legacy than in the truth or God’s will. Even if a peace treaty is signed, it will not last. Islamists are determined to exterminate Israel, and Israel’s trading the land that God gave them for an illusory peace will bring curses, not the shalom of peace.