At least one Israeli Knesset member has lost faith in the United States and says Europe should take over mediating the Arab-Jew conflict. Shlomo Breznitz of the Kadima party has proposed a radical plan to break the current deadlock: handing administration of the West Bank and Gaza Strip over to Europe until a Palestinian state can be established.

According to David Bedein of Israel Insider, the plan would require taking action in the West Bank similar to that implemented in the Gaza Strip in the summer of 2005: dismantling Jewish communities and vacating the Jewish presence. The difference, however, is that rather than immediately turning the area over to Palestinians—which in Gaza has produced a haven for terrorist activity—the West Bank would move under the control of possibly tens of thousands of European soldiers.

The Breznitz proposal rules out a role for the U.S. because of its present involvement in Iraq. Says Breznitz, America “has lost its status as an honest broker in the view of the Palestinians and the Arab states.” This omission provides strong evidence of a trend the Trumpet has been tracking for some time—a shift in confidence away from the U.S. as a mediator in favor of Europe. It also constitutes one of the strongest-ever statements of confidence from an Israeli politician regarding Europe’s peacekeeping powers.

Breznitz presented the plan at the Herzliya Conference, an annual Israeli security meeting. He explained to the Hebrew-language daily Maariv, “The only way to get out of the impasse is to transfer the territories, for a limited time, to an international mandate, that will run them until the establishment of a Palestinian state.”

“I have reason to believe, and I don’t want to expand on this,” Breznitz was quoted as saying, “that the Palestinians will support the proposal. Ambassadors and diplomatic representatives from European countries who were shown the proposal also believe that, without international help, it will not be possible to resolve the conflict.”

This plan appears consistent with past statements of intent by Israeli Prime Minister Ehud Olmert. According to Bedein, Breznitz is considered a close associate of Olmert, as their two families often vacation together.

It will be worth tracking this idea in the coming months. Based on biblical prophecies regarding a relationship opening up between Israel and Europe, and Israel apparently soliciting Europe’s help in managing its increasingly unmanageable problems, we expect some version of Breznitz’s proposal to gain traction in Israeli politics.