Israel puts pressure on Palestinians after pull-out

NOW that Israel has redrawn its own borders before the eyes of the world, completing with dazzling speed its pullout from the Gaza Strip and part of the West Bank, it has this message for the Palestinians: “We’ve dealt with our extremists, now you deal with yours.”

And the Palestinians are telling Israel: “You’ve proven that withdrawing is feasible, so do not stop.”

Both Israeli and Palestinian officials said the evacuation opens a rare opportunity for renewing talks. But militant violence, chaos in Gaza, Israeli politics and big differences on the issues of statehood and borders bode poorly for peace.