That's how Dick refers to the land on which the Palestinian Authority will someday (presumably) try to forge a nation. However, my understanding of the wall is that it will separate the PA from Israel, but will not wall off the PA's borders with Egypt or Jordan. So, to say that the PA will be "walled off from the world" is an overstatement.
When I first heard about the wall I thought it was a great idea, if it could be made practical. I don't know enough about traffic between the PA and Israel, but I suspect that the wall can be made to work. Whether the wall is following the right line or not is really something I feel is up to Israel. Obviously, if they wall off more territory than the Palestinians would ever accept, there would never be a negotiated settlement. But, if they get the wall right, it offers a real hope that something along the lines of peace (or at least an absence of violence) can take root. That period of non-violence might lead to a changed Palestinian leadership and attitude. I really believe that life for the Palestinian people will be better if this wall succeeds.
Breathing space and time to relax - that's what's needed in the Middle East. A negotiated settlement can follow from that. If the wall fails, I'll revert to my previous view that Israel is doomed.
