Posted on 11/05/2007 4:41:09 AM PST by SJackson
Palestinians Demand Statehood Timetable Chief Negotiator Says If No Deadline Is Set, U.S. Peace RAMALLAH, West Bank, Oct. 30, 2007
chief Palestinian peace negotiator threatened on Tuesday that there would be no talks with Israel unless a deadline is set for establishing a Palestinian state.
Palestinian officials have repeatedly said they want a detailed timeline for talks that are expected to begin in earnest after a U.S.-sponsored Mideast conference in November or December. But although Israeli Prime Minister Ehud Olmert has consistently resisted the notion of a deadline, they had never before made the matter a condition for talks.
On Tuesday, lead negotiator Ahmed Qureia tightened the screws.
"The Israeli prime minister has stated that he will not accept a timetable, and we say we will not accept negotiations without a timetable," Qureia said at a news conference with the European Union's external affairs commissioner, Benita Ferrero-Waldner.
He delivered the ultimatum as the two sides struggle to bridge yawning gaps ahead of the peace summit. It wasn't clear whether the Palestinians would really carry out the threat, or were trying to wrest concessions from Israel ahead of the conference.
(Excerpt) Read more at cbsnews.com ...
RAMALLAH, West Bank (AP) — The chief Palestinian peace negotiator raised the stakes Tuesday for a U.S.-sponsored peace conference, saying there will be no talks with Israel unless it agrees to set a deadline for establishing a Palestinian state.
Ahmed Qureia's ultimatum is the latest problem to beset already troubled plans for the conference. Arab nations have been slow to endorse the effort, and Israel is making only general promises instead of specific proposals.
However, it was unclear if the Palestinians could afford to follow through with their ultimatum, boycotting a conference called by President Bush at a time when moderate President Mahmoud Abbas needs Western support and U.S. aid in his struggle against Hamas, which expelled his loyalists and took over Gaza in June. Instead, the threat could be a ploy to wring concessions from Israel.
Israel and the Palestinians differ over the issue of a timetable for setting up a Palestinian state, and talks between Abbas and Israeli Prime Minister Ehud Olmert have so far failed to solve the impasse.
On Tuesday, lead Palestinian negotiator Ahmed Qureia tightened the screws.
"The Israeli prime minister has stated that he will not accept a timetable, and we say we will not accept negotiations without a timetable," Qureia said at a news conference with the European Union's external affairs commissioner, Benita Ferrero-Waldner.
Qureia indicated the talks with Israel weren't going well.
"We haven't gotten closer yet concerning the issues," he said. "We are talking in general about the issues that should be included in the document. (But) we haven't yet touched the core issues."
What the Palestinians want, he said, is "a clear and specific document, without vagueness,, that lays the basic foundation for all final status issues. Without that, the conference will be hindered."
Israeli government spokeswoman Miri Eisin said negotiations should be held behind closed doors, not through the media.
"We're not at the ultimatum stage," Eisin said. "They agreed to work to go forward, and we are committed to going forward to a joint statement."
No date has so far been set for the peace conference in Annapolis, Maryland, because the two sides remain so far apart on the starting point. Israel wants a vague joint statement of objectives, but the Palestinians want a detailed outline that would address core issues.
These include final borders, sovereignty over disputed Jerusalem and a solution for Palestinians who fled or were expelled from their homes in the war that followed Israel's creation in 1948.
In the past, deadlines for establishing a Palestinian state have been set and ignored. The latest was the "road map" plan of 2003, a three-stage process ending in creation of a Palestinian state in 2005. The plan stalled at the first stage.
Qureia said a U.S. envoy, Lt. Gen. Keith Dayton, is meeting with both sides to try to revive the "road map."
In Egypt on Tuesday, Abbas lashed out against Israel for cutting fuel supplies to Gaza in an effort to pressure militants there to stop their daily rocket fire into southern Israel. Ten mortar rounds exploded in an Israeli village near Gaza Tuesday afternoon, the military said. No one was hurt.
On Monday, Israel's attorney general held up the government's plan to cut back electricity supplies to Gaza, demanding more work be done to prevent humanitarian harm.
"We have told the Israelis that they are wrong in adopting these measures, which we fully reject," Abbas said after meeting with Egyptian President Hosni Mubarak in Cairo. "We do not accept at all this collective punishment."
Palestinians in Gaza rely on Israel for all of their fuel and more than half of their electricity.
If the energy cutbacks don't halt rocket attacks, then Israel threatens an invasion. Defense Minister Ehud Barak told Army Radio on Tuesday, "Every day that passes brings us closer to a broad operation in Gaza."
High Volume. Articles on Israel can also be found by clicking on the Topic or Keyword Israel. or WOT [War on Terror]
----------------------------
Too bad!
Walk out and see how that helps.
Iran’s on this
i.e....they want money.
If they really wanted their own state, they would just declare it.
I hear people in hell sometimes demand ice water. How’s that working out for them?
LLS
Okay, set it for immediately after no Israelis are killed by Palestinians for a two year uninterupted
period.
Jordan knows how to deal with Palestinians.
How about after one year no activities against Israel?
Our deal first.
Negotiations later.
I’m bored with this mess and have been for the last forty years.
Kick ‘em across the nearest border. Let the Palistinians fester elsewhere. That will turn the mess into a little thing known as “not my problem anymore.”
Demand? (cue flashback harp) As in offering a certain palestinian leader almost all of the land and they still refused? Ah... what a wonderful moment of democracy, dialogue and peace for all since. If only we had a Carter or Clinton. /s
Nah, I pass. They could always demand a state within Jordan though.
How about Israel not allow any Palis work, no fuel, no food, medical care, no repairs (as in the sewage incident) or building of infrastructure? You know, do it themselves with all the money they get from the ‘telethons’ for them. My bad... that’s jihad money, not for the people they care for; Evidenced by how many Arab states have extended their fraternal arms to their brothers. /s
Abbas ..... “We do not accept at all this collective punishment.”
How typical of the anti-rationality Palis to demand their negotiation goal be agreed to prior to negotiation.
These people are unbelievable. Just run the clock until Hillary is Pres.
I know... and I thought it was me.
Even if you had a sixteen year old... When you see them barking about Israel cutting back their fuel and electricity, what the obvious question?
Why haven’t they built to provide these things for themselves? Where do the donations go? We know.
No common sense here, we’re talking principalities and powers. As someone above said, only when the last radical stops drawing breath... or Lord forbid they glimpse through brainwashing and learn their actual history, will this end.
You get Qureia, you get Haniyeh ping
Israel needs to cancel their appearance at this absurd farce. They need to stop all talks until Condi Reich is gone from government.
I’m sorry, but Condi is an IDIOT to push for this.
"Show me just what Mohammed brought that was new, and there you will find things only evil and inhuman, such as his command to spread by the sword the faith he preached." - Manuel II Palelologus
Very true.
LLS
Disclaimer: Opinions posted on Free Republic are those of the individual posters and do not necessarily represent the opinion of Free Republic or its management. All materials posted herein are protected by copyright law and the exemption for fair use of copyrighted works.