Palestine: West Bank Leadership Scrambles to Regain Authority

Israel-Palestine: No Progress in Mitchell Tour

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The Palestinian Authority, trying to fend off increasing pressure over its deferral of the Goldstone Report at the United Nations Human Rights Council last week, called for a general strike in the West Bank and the Gaza Strip on Friday to protest Israel's "measures against the al-Aqsa Mosque" and asked the Human Rights Council to discuss both the Goldstone Report and the recent clashes between Palestinians and Israeli policemen in East Jerusalem .
On Friday, the Central Council of Fatah, the party of the Palestinian Authority leadership, called on the populace to mobilize "in defense" of al-Aqsa Mosque, protesting Israel's restrictions on access. Meanwhile, Ibrahim Khraishi, the Palestinian Authority's ambassador to the UN, said, "We deferred, so we were expecting that the Israelis should respect in some way human rights, but this act of aggression against people, against the human rights and humanitarian law, is unbelievable."

Israeli media, however, report that the Palestinian move will be blocked by the US, which is supposedly embarrassed by the situation. Israeli officials claim that the "number one topic" for US envoy George Mitchell during his meeting with Palestinian officials was to convince them not to pursue the initiative.

Israel-Palestine: No Progress in Mitchell Tour

Israel-Palestine: Mixed Reception for US Envoy Mitchell in Tel Aviv

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While US special envoy George Mitchell's latest tour of Israel and Palestine has not ended, it does not appear to have broken the deadlock over talks. A statement issued after the two-hour closed-door meeting between Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and Mitchell described the discussion as effective and constructive, but there was no indication of a change in the status of Israeli settlements in the West Bank and East Jerusalem.

After his meeting with Netanyahu, Mitchell saw Palestinian Authority leader Mahmoud Abbas in Ramallah. Palestinian negotiator Saeb Erekat said Abbas reiterated demand for a full halt in settlements.

Mitchell told reporters that efforts to find a solution would continue, although at a lower level for the time being. He added: "We invited the two sides to send their representatives to Washington in the very near future to continue our discussions."

Israel-Palestine: Mixed Reception for US Envoy Mitchell in Tel Aviv

Israel FM Lieberman: Distance from US, No Agreement with Palestine
Israel-Palestine: Sacrificing the Goldstone Report to the War of Politics

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President Obama's special envoy for the Middle East, George Mitchell, is back in Israel. He  held talks with Israeli Defense Minister Ehud Barak and President Shimon Peres on Thursday and is expected to meet Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu today before moving to the West Bank to speak with Palestinian Authority leader Mahmoud Abbas this weekend.

Mitchell's visit comes midst increasing tension between Israelis and Palestinians over the Temple Mount in East Jerusalem and pressure on Abbas over the Goldstone Report on Gaza. The envoy did not refer to those events; instead, Mitchell told Peres of his hope that peace talks between Israel and the Palestinians can be restarted soon and of Obama's commitment to bringing peace to the region. After Mitchell gave him the same message, Barak portrayed Israel as the "partner" of United States in the peace process, adding, "The time has come to move forward to start the process and pass all of the obstacles, because this will help everyone... No obstacle is impassable!"

But Barak's words were not echoed by Lieberman, who is calling for detachment from the US and ruling out peace with Palestine in the near-future: "I will tell [Mitchell] clearly, there are many conflicts in the world that haven't reached a comprehensive solution and people learned to live with it." Since it was not the right time for a final agreement, Lieberman suggested that Mitchell should focus on an interim accord, leaving "the tough issues for a much later stage".

Haaretz reports that a senior U.S. official told Israeli reporters that Mitchell's visit was not likely to conclude with an announcement of renewed talks. Israeli sources, however, said --- despite Lieberman's unhelpful intervention --- that this was "within reach."

The Ultimate Israel-Palestine Football Match

UEFA president Michel Platini said, during a visit to Jerusalem on Tuesday, that he believes football can play a role in bringing about peace in the Middle East. Maybe, he is right. Maybe, it is only football that can bring peace to the region...

After Platini's words, we thought how two sides might come together, shake hands before the kickoff, and talk politics in the middle of the pitch. Imagine Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu drinking from Palestinian Authority leader Mahmoud Abbas's water and Israeli President Shimon Peres congratulating Hamas political diretor Khaled Meshaal's freekick goal. Just imagine...

The Palestinian Squad:

1 - Salam Fayyad - PA Prime Minister
2 - Bassam Al-Salhi - Leader of The Palestinian People's Party
3 - Ahmad Sa'adat - General Secretary of The Popular Front for the Liberation of Palestine
4 - Khaled Meshal - Hamas leader in Syria
5 - Farouk al-Kaddoumi - Secretary-general of Fatah's central committee
6 - Aziz Duwaik - the Speaker of the Palestinian Legislative Council
7 - Saeb Erekat - Palestinian Authority negotiator in Israeli-PA peace process
8 - Ismail Haniyeh - Hamas leader in Gaza
9 - Nayef Hawatmeh - Leader of The Democratic Front for the Liberation of Palestine
10 - Mahmoud Abbas - PA President
11 - Saleh Ra'fat - Leader of The Palestinian Democratic Union

The Israeli Squad:

1 - Shimon Peres - President
2 - Yitzhak Aharonovich - Minister of Internal Security
3 - Silvan Shalom - Vice Prime Minister
4 - Moshe Ya'alon - Vice Prime Minister
5 - Avigdor Lieberman - Foreign Minister
6 - Ehud Barak - Defense Minister
7 - Danny Ayalon - Deputy Foreign Minister
8 - Dan Meridor - Deputy Prime Minister
9 - Eli Yishai - Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Internal Affairs
10 - Benjamin Netanyahu - Prime Minister
11 - Ya'akov Ne'eman - Minister of Justice

Ref: George Mitchell (USA)

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Palestine: Watching the Division of a City (Hebron)

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Fatah Holds Line on Israel's Settlements: On Tuesday, Fatah's Central Committee, the movement's key decision-making body, met with the Palestinian leader Mahmoud Abbas. Last week's tripartite meeting was discussed during the meeting. The faction declared that Abbas must not resume peace talks unless Israel freezes its settlement construction.

Mohammed Dahlan, a committee member, said the panel told Abbas he must not budge, as "settlements and negotiations are two parallel lines that will never meet". According to Dahlan, Fatah's reservation on the peace process is also an advantage that can be used as leverage against President Barack Obama's insistance on peace talks "without preconditions".

Netanyahu Blasts Goldstone Report on Gaza: Richard Goldstone told CNN on Wednesday that Israel had targeted civilian sites during the Gaza War, though he stressed that he did not believe it was an Israeli policy: "Some of the killing...was certainly intentional. There was no mistake in bombing factories. The Israeli intelligence has very precise information."

[youtube]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8NCcexzbAkw[/youtube]

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu insisting that any trial by the International Criminal Court of the war crimes alleged in the report would deal a death blow to peace:

[The UN] could revert back to the days when it compared Zionism to racism. It's starting in Israel, but it will reach other nations and it will hurt the UN. Anyone who supports the Goldstone report and its conclusions is in effect against peace.

If the report reaches the international court in Hague, it will bring the peace process to a halt because Israel won't take the risks necessary to achieve peace if it is not assured the right to defend itself. Anyone who desires peace must stop this report right now.