Posted on 12/23/2002 2:37:53 AM PST by Bella_Bru
US Sen. Joseph Lieberman expressed support for Palestinian statehood during a visit to Ramallah on Monday and called conditions in the West Bank town "desperate."
Lieberman, the Democratic candidate for vice president in 2000, is considered a front-runner for the party's 2004 presidential nomination. He has said he will make a decision about whether to seek the nomination early next year.
On his first trip to Israel and the Palestinian territories since May 2000, Lieberman said he came with a message from Congress that it wants to take an active part in bringing peace to the region.
"There's strong support for the aspirations of the Palestinian people for a state. The question is whether there will be sufficient leadership here and in the world to bring this about sooner than later," Lieberman told reporters after meeting Palestinian Information Minister Yasser Abed Rabbo.
"It's important to bring about hope in Palestinians and among Israelis because without hope there will be no progress," Lieberman added.
Lieberman is scheduled to meet several other senior Palestinian officials Monday. He met Prime Minister Ariel Sharon in Jerusalem on Sunday.
Touring Ramallah - a town that was reoccupied by Israeli troops in June following a wave of suicide bombings and other attacks on Israelis - Lieberman was surprised by the damage to the main Palestinian West Bank commercial hub.
"There are desperate humanitarian conditions here," he said.
Abed Rabbo said he had explained to Lieberman that the Cabinet decided Sunday to postpone presidential and parliamentary elections scheduled for January because it is logistically impossible for people to vote while Israel occupies every major Palestinian West Bank town and city, except Jericho.
The postponement is seen as a blow to US demands for reforms in the Palestinian Authority, but Israel says it cannot withdraw from Palestinian areas because of constant threats of attacks.
Abed Rabbo criticized what he called "US administration support of Israeli crimes and atrocities against the Palestinian people."
Really...and what about the way Israelis must live with the constant threat of suicide bombers??????
I don't believe anything this traitor says, tomorrow it will be something different if it will benifit HIM.
If Lieberman is serious he should offer them Hartford
or New Haven, because they are so PEACEFUL.
This guy is a weak, ineffective senator, who constantly whines as he talks.
He certainly is another one of those politicians who has no core beliefs. That became evident as he flipped flopped on most positions he took during the 2000 election.
I am surprised that the Palestinians aren't laughing in his face. They are going to have a Jewish senator from the United States dictate to them what they should do?
Joe... your suffering from delusions of grander. Take two aspirin, and go to bed. Sheesh!
From who, other than palestinians themselves? Loserman panders to the enemy of his own people. Anything for campaign cash, eh big Joe?
The very fact he is Jewish makes him blackmailable on the subject of giveaways to the Palestinians, and makes it likely he would be unable to take the strong, utterly immovable stand in favour of the removal of our enemies from our land...that the next President must and will by G-d's grace, do.
Disgraceful. What a piece of excrement. The road to Auschwitz was paved with traitors like Lieberman, Rabin and Peres.
/sarcasm
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