Withdrawal.

Editor,

"Withdrawal" in the case of Israel-Palestine is a powerfully loaded word. Hundreds of people have died on both sides precisely over the issue of whether Israel will "withdraw" from the West Bank.

Your referring to partial withdrawal as "withdrawal", especially when Israel's plan is to abandon certain small settlements while expanding its largest ones, gives the mistaken impression that Israel has decided to "withdraw" from the West Bank, which clearly it has not.

Among the many reasons that this matters is that Hamas supports the "two-state" solution on condition that Israel "withdraw" from the West Bank. The "right-to-exist" canard is propaganda, rooted in complexities regarding Israel's declared borders, and is used to justify foot-dragging and permanent annexation by the Israeli side. Your newspaper can support the cause of peace by using the word "withdrawal" carefully.