Palestinians not optimistic about peace
10 May 2012 5:19 AM GMT
Palestinian National Authority (PNA) and Islamic Hamas movement officials said on Tuesday that they see no big hope in reviving the stalled peace talks with Israel after Israel's Likud and Kadima parties agreed to form an unity government.
Nabil Shaath, member of the central committee of the Fatah party said this agreement 'will bring nothing new to the Palestinian-Israeli relations as long as Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu's policies remained in place'.
Shaath said that Netanyahu 'doesn't recognise the Palestinian people's right to have their independent state' on the territories that Israel occupied in 1967.
'Reshuffling governments, changing them or even going to early elections are not the basic things as long as Netanyahu avoids the requirements of the peace process and sticks to his settlement policies,' Shaath said, referring to Jewish settlement activities in the West Bank.
Netanyahu suddenly struck a deal with head of the opposition Kadima party Shaul Mofaz, cancelling early elections that had been scheduled in September. Mofaz, who will be Netanyahu's deputy, has often criticised the prime minister for his aggressive focus on Iran, saying that imminent threat to Israel came from the Palestinians, as the peace talks have been stalled for nearly a year and a half.
Mofaz had said earlier that he will work on restarting the negotiations with the Palestinians, giving them 60 per cent of the West Bank and negotiating the rest. The main settlement blocs will remain in place and the Palestinians will get other land spaces in return, according to the Israel Radio.
Nemer Hammad, an aide to Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas, said that any Israeli government will be judged according to its actions on the ground regarding the Palestinian cause, adding that the upcoming Israeli government should halt settlement activities and recognise the two-state solution.
Ahmed Majdalani, a member of the executive committee of Palestine Liberation Organisation (PLO), accused Netanyahu of 'manoeuvering' to reduce internal public pressure on his government, which did not make progress in peace with the Palestinians. Meanwhile, a senior official in the Hamas government, which rules the Gaza Strip, said on Tuesday that the Israeli announcement of forming a unity government represents a serious threat to the Gaza Strip.              Â
EU APPEAL TO SAVE PRISONERS
The Palestinian National Authority (PNA) and the Islamic Hamas movement on Tuesday called on the European Union (EU) to press Israel to meet the demands of the hunger striking prisoners.
Palestinian Foreign Affairs Minister Riad al Maliki welcomed the call by the EU's missions in Jerusalem and Ramallah on Israel to provide medical care for the hunger strikers and improve the conditions of imprisonment.
Al Maliki said the EU members should 'demonstrate these calls into actions on the ground by putting more pressure on Israel. He warned that 'the death of any inmate would affect stability in the region.'
Meanwhile, Gaza ruler Hamas said that the EU's call to Israel was 'insufficient,' and said that Europe should take 'practical steps to save the prisoners.'
Nabil Shaath, member of the central committee of the Fatah party said this agreement 'will bring nothing new to the Palestinian-Israeli relations as long as Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu's policies remained in place'.
Shaath said that Netanyahu 'doesn't recognise the Palestinian people's right to have their independent state' on the territories that Israel occupied in 1967.
'Reshuffling governments, changing them or even going to early elections are not the basic things as long as Netanyahu avoids the requirements of the peace process and sticks to his settlement policies,' Shaath said, referring to Jewish settlement activities in the West Bank.
Netanyahu suddenly struck a deal with head of the opposition Kadima party Shaul Mofaz, cancelling early elections that had been scheduled in September. Mofaz, who will be Netanyahu's deputy, has often criticised the prime minister for his aggressive focus on Iran, saying that imminent threat to Israel came from the Palestinians, as the peace talks have been stalled for nearly a year and a half.
Mofaz had said earlier that he will work on restarting the negotiations with the Palestinians, giving them 60 per cent of the West Bank and negotiating the rest. The main settlement blocs will remain in place and the Palestinians will get other land spaces in return, according to the Israel Radio.
Nemer Hammad, an aide to Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas, said that any Israeli government will be judged according to its actions on the ground regarding the Palestinian cause, adding that the upcoming Israeli government should halt settlement activities and recognise the two-state solution.
Ahmed Majdalani, a member of the executive committee of Palestine Liberation Organisation (PLO), accused Netanyahu of 'manoeuvering' to reduce internal public pressure on his government, which did not make progress in peace with the Palestinians. Meanwhile, a senior official in the Hamas government, which rules the Gaza Strip, said on Tuesday that the Israeli announcement of forming a unity government represents a serious threat to the Gaza Strip.              Â
EU APPEAL TO SAVE PRISONERS
The Palestinian National Authority (PNA) and the Islamic Hamas movement on Tuesday called on the European Union (EU) to press Israel to meet the demands of the hunger striking prisoners.
Palestinian Foreign Affairs Minister Riad al Maliki welcomed the call by the EU's missions in Jerusalem and Ramallah on Israel to provide medical care for the hunger strikers and improve the conditions of imprisonment.
Al Maliki said the EU members should 'demonstrate these calls into actions on the ground by putting more pressure on Israel. He warned that 'the death of any inmate would affect stability in the region.'
Meanwhile, Gaza ruler Hamas said that the EU's call to Israel was 'insufficient,' and said that Europe should take 'practical steps to save the prisoners.'
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