Obama: America rejects Israeli settlements

Published yesterday (updated) 23/09/2009 19:51

Bethlehem - Ma'an -

America rejects the legitimacy of Israel's settlement enterprise, US President Barack Obama insisted in his address to the UN General Assembly on Wednesday.

After first calling on Palestinians to end "incitement" against Israel, Obama reiterated that "America does not accept the legitimacy of continued Israeli settlements," (built illegally on Palestinian lands).

He also acknowledged that his country too often fails to criticize Israel's policies toward Palestine. "The United States does Israel no favors when we fail to couple an unwavering commitment to its security with an insistence that Israel respect the legitimate claims and rights of the Palestinians."

The president's remarks came the same day an Israeli newspaper revealed that its defense minister, Ehud Barak, had recently okayed permits for 37 new housing units in an illegal West Bank settlement.

"I am not naive," he told the General Assembly. "I know this will be difficult. But all of us must decide whether we are serious about peace, or whether we only lend it lip-service."

Obama called on UN states to tone down criticism of Israel. "Nations within this body do the Palestinians no favors when they choose vitriolic attacks over a constructive willingness to recognize Israel's legitimacy."

"The time has come to re-launch negotiations without preconditions (i.e. not halt in illegal Israeli settlement activities on Palestinian lands, as he and Abbas insisted for several months) that address the permanent-status issues: security for Israelis and Palestinians; borders, refugees and Jerusalem," he said.

'End the occupation'

Hesitantly praising recent reforms by both the Israelis and Palestinians, Obama insisted that there was more work to be done, but applauded what he called America's aggressive efforts thus far.

"Upon taking office, I appointed a special envoy for Middle East Peace, and America has worked steadily and aggressively to advance the cause of two states – Israel and Palestine – in which peace and security take root, and the rights of both Israelis and Palestinians are respected," he said.

"The goal is clear: two states living side by side in peace and security," Obama said, reiterating his support for "a viable, independent Palestinian state with contiguous territory that ends the occupation that began in 1967, and realizes the potential of the Palestinian people."

He added, "I will not waver in my pursuit of peace."

Qassem: The New York meeting is a form of normalization, vindicates occupation

[ 22/09/2009 - 08:46 PM ]

NABLUS, (PIC)--

Dr. Abdul Sattar Qassem, political science professor at Najah University in Nablus, said on Tuesday that the three-way summit between Obama, Netanyahu and Abbas is a form of normalisation with the occupation and vindicates the occupation with regard to settlement building in the occupied West Bank.

"This meeting is part of normalisation program pursued by the occupation and the US administration," Dr. Qassem told PIC in an exclusive statement, "This meeting will only benefit the occupation and will not bring any benefits to the Palestinian people."

He added that such a meeting while the occupation continues to build settlements and tear up the West Bank serves as a vindication for these acts as it sends a message to the occupation that all theses acts do not bother the Arabs and Muslims the least.

About Abbas's reneging on his public declarations that he will not meet Netanyahu while settlements continue to be built, Qassem said that Abbas cannot decide for himself, adding that all the PA leadership in Ramallah is part of the US program, the US is the party that decides and if the PA leadership in Ramallah decides to have an independent position they risk losing financial support and luxurious life style.

He added that all Abbas's statements about Jewish settlement expansion in the West Bank do not mean a thing because practical steps taken by the PA contradict those statements.

Report: Barak approved 37 more settler units

Published yesterday (updated) 23/09/2009 17:43

Bethlehem - Ma'an/Agencies -

The  Israeli occupation government defense minister, Ehud Barak, has approved 37 more housing units for the West Bank settlement of Karnei Shomron, the Israeli newspaper Yedioth Ahronoth reported on Wednesday.

Weeks earlier Barak approved the construction of 455 such units elsewhere in the West Bank.

Word of Wednesday's approval came less than 24 hours after US President Barack Obama called on Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu during a meeting in New York to restrain, rather than freeze, future settlement activities in the West Bank.

Peace talks begin with little Palestinian or Israeli support

Published yesterday (updated) 23/09/2009 19:40

 Bethlehem - Ma’an -

An inglorious beginning to peace talks was kicked off with what some described as a “civil” meeting between President Mahmoud Abbas and Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu on Tuesday.

The two leaders reportedly stated their previous positions of stalemate, while the US diplomatic machine put its gears into drive and arranged for US special envoy George Mitchell to return to the region after he failed to convince sides to sit down in New York. Teams of Israeli and Palestinian negotiators will also travel to Washington for a resumption of efforts.

Palestinians and Israeli sides, however, have shown no willingness to change their positions and it was not clear how US President Barack Obama planned to bring both sides together.

Some said Obama showed impatience at the “foot dragging” around the resumption of talks, and in public statements the US president said approaching the issue with a sense of “urgency” was the only way the process may see success.

International and Israeli press have begun speculating on actual means of bringing the two sides to an agreement, with one Israeli paper quoting an unnamed Palestinian source as saying Palestinians received a “commitment from the American administration that there would be no construction in the settlements,” as long as talks continued.

The same article launched what is sure to be the next round of tit-for-tat blaming, noting, "Americans understand there is only one obstacle – Netanyahu and his policy." Following the failure of Mitchell’s efforts to bring sides to the table Israeli and Palestinian leaders exchanged statements over who was to blame over the failure to restart talks.

No “secret deal” on settlements

Media reports on rumored secret deals between the three parties, mainly around settlements and normalization with Arab states, seemed to suggest internal mechanisms were at work that may secure some kind of success for talks, but statements from leaders give no hint that the secret deals are in fact reality.

In a report in the Washington Times on Tuesday Netanyahu’s media adviser, Nir Hefetz, was quoted as saying Netanyahu would not support a settlement freeze, because he considers the settlements to be a "Zionist enterprise" essential to the state of Israel.

The same article discussed a rumored “secret offer” to halt settlement construction. On Wednesday the idea that a settlement freeze had secretly been negotiated seemed further quashed when AP quoted Israeli Foreign Minister Avigdor Lieberman - a settler himself - that the meeting in New York had been a victory for settlers as Israel “rebuffed” demands that settlement construction be halted.

Netanyahu: Palestinians agreed to resume talks

Published Tuesday 22/09/2009 (updated) 23/09/2009 09:55

 Bethlehem - Ma'an/Agencies -

The Israeli occupation government prime minister, Benjamin Netanyahu, on Tuesday said his government and the current Palestinian administration had agreed to renew negotiations without preconditions.

"There was general agreement, including on the part of the Palestinians, that the peace process has to be resumed as soon as possible with no preconditions," the Israeli prime minister said shortly after meeting Presidents Mahmoud Abbas and Barack Obama in New York.

It was not clear if the prime minister meant Abbas had agreed to resume negotiations immediately, or if the Palestinians had simply expressed interest in holding talks once a settlement freeze was in place.

In any event, Obama called on both sides to "find a way forward" and begin negotiations soon. He said he would dispatch his special envoy, George Mitchell, to hold meetings with both sides within a week.

"I've asked the prime minister and president to continue these discussions by sending their representatives to Washington," Obama said. "It is past time to talk about starting negotiations. It is time to move forward."

In statements leading up to Tuesday's summit in New York, senior aides to Abbas insisted that the meet not be interpreted as a return to negotiations, and reiterated that there would be no major talks without a freeze in Israeli settlement activity.

There was no immediate comment from the Palestinian Authority or Palestine Liberation Organization on whether their terms had changed by Tuesday evening.