There are many angles of thoughts depending on which side you are standing.
Time is running out some say while some justifications are for nation’s good.
All in all, talk , followed by compromise is the right remedy to clear out any accusations or assumptions…
Else the ramification will be very messy…
All Israeli options against Iran on table: Barak (Reuters)
WASHINGTON (Reuters) - Israeli Defense Minister Ehud Barak refused on Wednesday to rule out a military strike on Iran, just hours after Israel's foreign minister said the Jewish state would not do so.
"I repeat what I have always said, we are not taking any options off the table," Barak said after meetings with officials from U.S. President Barack Obama's administration in Washington.
Israel's Foreign Minister Avigdor Lieberman said earlier at a Moscow news conference that "Israel is not planning to bomb Iran."
Widely believed to be the Middle East's only nuclear power, Israel has repeatedly described Iran's uranium enrichment as a threat to its existence and has said all options were on the table in preventing Tehran from building atomic weapons.
Barak said Israel supports the Obama administration's initiative to try to talk Iran out of trying to build nuclear weapons but believes it should be limited to a set timeframe.
He added that it would not take long to discover Iran's nuclear aspirations.
"We are talking about a number of months, no more. Whether it is late August, or early or mid September, it should be enough to understand whether the Iranians are serious (about compromise) or whether they are just playing for time," Barak said.
Iran says its nuclear program is for electricity generation.
(Reporting by Dan Williams, writing by Ori Lewis in Jerusalem; editing by Philippa Fletcher)
Read more...
Thursday, June 4, 2009
Tuesday, June 2, 2009
Hanan in Gaza's Comment (Chedet)
Hanan made another come back in Chedet's GAZA post. With his humble yet provoking tone, I can feel the strong urge by One Israeli to make Peace with his conflict enemy.
On the other hand, there are already few negotiations & discussions occured in the last 1 year but yet both Leaders cannot reach to a common agreement. So, I do believe that the discussion channel is open & the only thing lack in this area is the will to Compromise...
By Hanan
Dear Dr. Mahathir and friends, Assalamalaikum and grace.
I don’t agree with the opinions of Rabbi Cohen as well as with the other personas mentioned in the post. Even so I can see some important points in Dr. Mahathir’s post. I can feel a change from a stormy wind into a refreshing breeze. Dr. Mahathir still talks about Israel as the enemy but on the other hand he admit its existence. At least there is a hope that Israel is not to be wiped off the map. I agree with Dr. Mahathir that the Palestinians are focused more in revenge than to solve their own problems, once and forever. Revenge is not promoting any logic, any solution but more frustration for all.
It is not a secret that mistakes are a human habit. For sure Israel did mistakes as same that the Palestinians and Arabs did mistakes. Those are whipping mistakes we are paying the toll day by day. Both sides and even non involved people worldwide.
Do you think that by continuing ignoring each other we can find the solution? Being ignorant is the first and most danger step to become an extremist. So what can we do? We (all of us) can do much. First, we must think in a some reverse order. We know since day one that we are the “slaves” of the politicians. It should be the opposite. We must make the politicians to be our (the people’s) “slaves”. We need to enforce the politicians to do what we think is right for our living. They are our servants and not we are their servants. We must stop being the “herd”.
Why should peace be a business of leaders? Why should leaders solve conflicts? We tend to think that prior being friends we must have peace, then after peace is achieved we can become friends. This cannot work since if we never become friends, we never can talk, so we never can have peace unless one side defeats and oppresses the other side. The logic is in reverse order. We need to become friends first and then we can talk to each other frankly. We can be tolerant and respectful. We can compromise, even doing it willingly. Then we don’t need the peace because it is here. Simple and easy.
We must realize that we (the people) are used by the politicians like a putty for their own political aspirations. Sometimes those aspirations are in an increasing inertia towards the wrong direction. People should have the courage to speak up their minds. Just look what I’m doing. It is not a easy task to confront within me with “biased definitions”. I’m sure it is happening to all of us. I call myself a “right-wing” Zionist Jew. But is it really important how I call myself? What is important is what I do and perform. Just to become closer to you I’m not using the word “Zionist” in my my signature footer. I know that this word is provoking some or many of you. Since provoking is not my intention I can compromise and wipe the “ego” banner.
Mr. JJJ called me a “new nazi” [That doesn't diminish the fact that... ZIONIST JEWS ARE THE NEW NAZIS!]. Does Mr. JJJ think that he made me being sad or humiliated? Not at all. Mr. JJJ is still a “biased” person. I forgive JJJ for being wrong judging me. I could be easily ignorant of all of you and of Dr. Mahathir. This is a very easy task to be ignorant. I feel that I have a purpose to get closer to my enemies. This is a much harder task and a long process than to be ignorant. We must step toward each other and become friends. To become friends we first must think that we cannot destroy each other. This is what I learned from the “hidden” message of Dr. Mahathir. Furthermore, I’m almost sure that Dr. Mahathir intention is to check if you are (Malaysians and Muslims) ready to accept Israel (the state format is important but a bargaining issue via a peaceful talk).
I can feel that change. As I’m an engineer in my profession, I’m using sometimes the disadvantage of the problem as the “magic solution particles” to solve the problem. This is a kind of an opposite logic, not rational. But if you think deeper, it is the most rational solution. I assume we (all of us) are people with love in their hearts. In the present situation our “love” is directed to hate the enemy and become a disadvantage. Can we use it differently? Can we use it without any manipulation? YES WE CAN!!!
Dr. Mahathir’s points #7 and #10 are providing us a springboard to the pool of peace. I already jumped into that pool and swimming almost alone (I have one excellent swimmer beside me). The pool is still empty and waiting for more swimmers to jump in. There is an endless space for all. We must hurry before it will be too late.
Points #8 and #11 are upsetting and expressing exactly what wrong political manipulations are causing. The quiet majority is still swallowing the accumulated bitterness for so many years.
Wassalam,
Hanan, Jewish,
Israel.
Read more...
On the other hand, there are already few negotiations & discussions occured in the last 1 year but yet both Leaders cannot reach to a common agreement. So, I do believe that the discussion channel is open & the only thing lack in this area is the will to Compromise...
By Hanan
Dear Dr. Mahathir and friends, Assalamalaikum and grace.
I don’t agree with the opinions of Rabbi Cohen as well as with the other personas mentioned in the post. Even so I can see some important points in Dr. Mahathir’s post. I can feel a change from a stormy wind into a refreshing breeze. Dr. Mahathir still talks about Israel as the enemy but on the other hand he admit its existence. At least there is a hope that Israel is not to be wiped off the map. I agree with Dr. Mahathir that the Palestinians are focused more in revenge than to solve their own problems, once and forever. Revenge is not promoting any logic, any solution but more frustration for all.
It is not a secret that mistakes are a human habit. For sure Israel did mistakes as same that the Palestinians and Arabs did mistakes. Those are whipping mistakes we are paying the toll day by day. Both sides and even non involved people worldwide.
Do you think that by continuing ignoring each other we can find the solution? Being ignorant is the first and most danger step to become an extremist. So what can we do? We (all of us) can do much. First, we must think in a some reverse order. We know since day one that we are the “slaves” of the politicians. It should be the opposite. We must make the politicians to be our (the people’s) “slaves”. We need to enforce the politicians to do what we think is right for our living. They are our servants and not we are their servants. We must stop being the “herd”.
Why should peace be a business of leaders? Why should leaders solve conflicts? We tend to think that prior being friends we must have peace, then after peace is achieved we can become friends. This cannot work since if we never become friends, we never can talk, so we never can have peace unless one side defeats and oppresses the other side. The logic is in reverse order. We need to become friends first and then we can talk to each other frankly. We can be tolerant and respectful. We can compromise, even doing it willingly. Then we don’t need the peace because it is here. Simple and easy.
We must realize that we (the people) are used by the politicians like a putty for their own political aspirations. Sometimes those aspirations are in an increasing inertia towards the wrong direction. People should have the courage to speak up their minds. Just look what I’m doing. It is not a easy task to confront within me with “biased definitions”. I’m sure it is happening to all of us. I call myself a “right-wing” Zionist Jew. But is it really important how I call myself? What is important is what I do and perform. Just to become closer to you I’m not using the word “Zionist” in my my signature footer. I know that this word is provoking some or many of you. Since provoking is not my intention I can compromise and wipe the “ego” banner.
Mr. JJJ called me a “new nazi” [That doesn't diminish the fact that... ZIONIST JEWS ARE THE NEW NAZIS!]. Does Mr. JJJ think that he made me being sad or humiliated? Not at all. Mr. JJJ is still a “biased” person. I forgive JJJ for being wrong judging me. I could be easily ignorant of all of you and of Dr. Mahathir. This is a very easy task to be ignorant. I feel that I have a purpose to get closer to my enemies. This is a much harder task and a long process than to be ignorant. We must step toward each other and become friends. To become friends we first must think that we cannot destroy each other. This is what I learned from the “hidden” message of Dr. Mahathir. Furthermore, I’m almost sure that Dr. Mahathir intention is to check if you are (Malaysians and Muslims) ready to accept Israel (the state format is important but a bargaining issue via a peaceful talk).
I can feel that change. As I’m an engineer in my profession, I’m using sometimes the disadvantage of the problem as the “magic solution particles” to solve the problem. This is a kind of an opposite logic, not rational. But if you think deeper, it is the most rational solution. I assume we (all of us) are people with love in their hearts. In the present situation our “love” is directed to hate the enemy and become a disadvantage. Can we use it differently? Can we use it without any manipulation? YES WE CAN!!!
Dr. Mahathir’s points #7 and #10 are providing us a springboard to the pool of peace. I already jumped into that pool and swimming almost alone (I have one excellent swimmer beside me). The pool is still empty and waiting for more swimmers to jump in. There is an endless space for all. We must hurry before it will be too late.
Points #8 and #11 are upsetting and expressing exactly what wrong political manipulations are causing. The quiet majority is still swallowing the accumulated bitterness for so many years.
Wassalam,
Hanan, Jewish,
Israel.
Read more...
Monday, June 1, 2009
Six killed when Abbas forces hit Hamas in West Bank (Reuters)
How can you fight outsiders if you have dirty laundry within your own yard?
Anyway, I think the Leaders should have the Right & United Political Ideology in ruling the state as well as solving the current crisis...
Six killed when Abbas forces hit Hamas in West Bank (Reuters)
By Naim Sweilem
QALQILYA, West Bank (Reuters) - Six people were killed on Sunday when forces loyal to Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas raided a Hamas hideout, just days after he promised in Washington to fulfill his security commitments.
The violence erupted when police encircled a house in the West Bank town of Qalqilya where a top Hamas field commander, Mohammad Samman, and his deputy Mohammad Yasin, had taken refuge, witnesses and security officials said.
It was the bloodiest internal Palestinian clash in the occupied West Bank since the Western-backed Abbas launched a security drive and revived peace talks with Israel in 2007 after breaking with Hamas over its takeover of the Gaza Strip.
Samman and Yasin had ignored calls to surrender, witnesses said. Palestinian security forces spokesman Adnan Damiri said police had tried to negotiate a peaceful end to the standoff.
"Thousands of shots were fired at the security forces," Damiri said, adding that large quantities of explosives were discovered in the Hamas hideout.
After the raid, Hamas threatened to call off Egyptian-sponsored reconciliation talks with Fatah that had been scheduled to resume in Cairo in July.
Fawzhi Barhoum, a Hamas spokesman in the Gaza Strip said: "We in Hamas have come closer than ever to taking a decision to suspend our participation in the dialogue."
A spokesman for Hamas's armed wing accused the Abbas-aligned forces of being "loyal to the Zionists" and alleged he was directly responsible for "the crime and its consequences."
Despite the violence, the operation could boost Abbas's credentials in Washington at a time when U.S. President Barack Obama is at odds with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu over Jewish settlements in the West Bank.
"IRON FIST" THREAT
"The Palestinian security forces will strike with an iron fist against anyone harming the interests of the Palestinian people," Abbas, describing the Hamas men as "outlaws," was quoted as saying by the Palestinian WAFA news agency.
Obama hosted Abbas in the White House on Thursday and complimented him on security steps he has taken in the West Bank under the 2003 peace "road map" that includes a call for a crackdown on militants.
Abbas, speaking to reporters in the Oval Office, said he was committed to "law and order" in the West Bank and to fulfilling "all of our obligations under the road map, from A to Z."
Obama noted that Abbas had been working with U.S. General Keith Dayton, who is helping the Palestinian Authority train its security forces. It was not immediately clear if U.S.-trained forces took part in the Qalqilya operation.
Israel, which has not met its road map commitments to halt the expansion of Jewish settlements, has said the Palestinians need to do more to meet their security obligations.
Israeli Defence Minister Ehud Barak, whose responsibilities include overseeing settlement construction, will hold talks in Washington this week in a bid to ease friction with Obama.
(Additional reporting by Joseph Nasr in Jerusalem, Mohammed Assadi in Ramallah and Nidal al-Mughrabi in Gaza; writing by Jeffrey Heller, Dan Williams, and Allyn Fisher-Ilan editing by Michael Roddy)
Read more...
Anyway, I think the Leaders should have the Right & United Political Ideology in ruling the state as well as solving the current crisis...
Six killed when Abbas forces hit Hamas in West Bank (Reuters)
By Naim Sweilem
QALQILYA, West Bank (Reuters) - Six people were killed on Sunday when forces loyal to Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas raided a Hamas hideout, just days after he promised in Washington to fulfill his security commitments.
The violence erupted when police encircled a house in the West Bank town of Qalqilya where a top Hamas field commander, Mohammad Samman, and his deputy Mohammad Yasin, had taken refuge, witnesses and security officials said.
It was the bloodiest internal Palestinian clash in the occupied West Bank since the Western-backed Abbas launched a security drive and revived peace talks with Israel in 2007 after breaking with Hamas over its takeover of the Gaza Strip.
Samman and Yasin had ignored calls to surrender, witnesses said. Palestinian security forces spokesman Adnan Damiri said police had tried to negotiate a peaceful end to the standoff.
"Thousands of shots were fired at the security forces," Damiri said, adding that large quantities of explosives were discovered in the Hamas hideout.
After the raid, Hamas threatened to call off Egyptian-sponsored reconciliation talks with Fatah that had been scheduled to resume in Cairo in July.
Fawzhi Barhoum, a Hamas spokesman in the Gaza Strip said: "We in Hamas have come closer than ever to taking a decision to suspend our participation in the dialogue."
A spokesman for Hamas's armed wing accused the Abbas-aligned forces of being "loyal to the Zionists" and alleged he was directly responsible for "the crime and its consequences."
Despite the violence, the operation could boost Abbas's credentials in Washington at a time when U.S. President Barack Obama is at odds with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu over Jewish settlements in the West Bank.
"IRON FIST" THREAT
"The Palestinian security forces will strike with an iron fist against anyone harming the interests of the Palestinian people," Abbas, describing the Hamas men as "outlaws," was quoted as saying by the Palestinian WAFA news agency.
Obama hosted Abbas in the White House on Thursday and complimented him on security steps he has taken in the West Bank under the 2003 peace "road map" that includes a call for a crackdown on militants.
Abbas, speaking to reporters in the Oval Office, said he was committed to "law and order" in the West Bank and to fulfilling "all of our obligations under the road map, from A to Z."
Obama noted that Abbas had been working with U.S. General Keith Dayton, who is helping the Palestinian Authority train its security forces. It was not immediately clear if U.S.-trained forces took part in the Qalqilya operation.
Israel, which has not met its road map commitments to halt the expansion of Jewish settlements, has said the Palestinians need to do more to meet their security obligations.
Israeli Defence Minister Ehud Barak, whose responsibilities include overseeing settlement construction, will hold talks in Washington this week in a bid to ease friction with Obama.
(Additional reporting by Joseph Nasr in Jerusalem, Mohammed Assadi in Ramallah and Nidal al-Mughrabi in Gaza; writing by Jeffrey Heller, Dan Williams, and Allyn Fisher-Ilan editing by Michael Roddy)
Read more...
Wednesday, May 27, 2009
DEBKAfile lifts fog from the Obama-Netanyahu balance sheet (Debka)
I am not sure this is true but it seems there are 2 ends hanging...One end: The un-rest situation in those 2 "States" that are deteriorating from day to day and the other end: Leaders seems taking longer time & shadowed under spectator's expectation.
But again, probably LONG TERM SOLUTION takes LONGER TIME to achieve...Let's wait till 4th June to determine this is true or just plain speculation...
DEBKAfile lifts fog from the Obama-Netanyahu balance sheet (Debka)
Almost a week after Israeli prime minister held his first talks with US president Barack Obama at the White House, last Tuesday, May 18, some of the fog obscuring their content is finally beginning to clear.
The White House was forced to rebut a major misapprehension, that the US president would use his June 4 speech in Cairo to launch a new Middle East peace plan.
There never was such a plan, DEBKAfile's Washington sources confirm. Once that misapprehension was removed, some of the subjects really discussed by the two leaders hoved into sight - or proved false.
For instance, Obama did not demand the repartition of Jerusalem; neither was he keen to pursue the Palestinian issue at all at this time. Most of all, he was after space to engage in negotiation with Tehran without the threat of a surprise Israeli military strike against Iran's nuclear sites hanging over the talks.
Who then had an interest in running the false hare of an Obama Middle East plan?
1. At some point, the White House preferred unclarity to an admission that the president had backed away from his pressure on Israel to negotiate a two-state peace accord with the Palestinians. In fact, Obama was persuaded by his awareness that Palestinian divisions are too profound to hope for results. The "two-state" formula is applicable in the foreseeable future only to the Palestinians - Hamas which rules the Gaza Strip and Fatah which dominates the West Bank Palestinian Authority.
For now, the US president has decided practically that it would be better to stick to the less ambitious goals of developing the West Bank economy, its governing institutions and a security apparatus, exactly as advised by Netanyahu and special Middle East Quartet envoy former UK prime minister Tony Blair. If some day Tehran and Damascus decide to join forces with Washington – a diminishing prospect at present – the US president can go back to promoting a united Palestinian state alongside Israel.
But Obama is keen on developing an expanded road map to bring moderate Arab governments into the peace process with Israel and start introducing normal relations on a regional level.
It may be assumed that the US president and Israeli prime minister did not exhaust this burning issue in their initial, ice-breaking conversation and they will remain in touch. Furthermore, these moves remain to be hammered out in Washington and in follow-up talks with the Israelis. Meanwhile, Egyptian president Hosni Mubarak, a pivotal figure in this initiative, is rumored to be very ill after cancelling his visit to Washington.
2. Jordan's Abdullah II's advisers at court were responsible for planting the tale of a new Obama peace initiative to be purportedly unveiled on June 4. Its provisions, such as making Jerusalem the twin Palestinian-Israeli capital, were to be imposed on Israel.
This fairy story was picked up by Israel's often anti-Netanyahu media, although its source was dubious - the London-based Arabic al Quds al-Arabi, which is a platform for radical Muslim quarters such as Hamas. The fiction gained wings from the lack of authoritative information on the content of the face-to-face conversation between Obama and Netanyahu last Tuesday, May 18.
This forced White House spokesman Robert Gibbs to produce a damper. Friday, May 22, Gibbs said "I know there has been some conjecture that included in this speech will be some detailed comprehensive Mideast peace plan, and it is not the intention nor was it ever the intention of this speech."
He made it clear that Obama's words would deal with Washington's relations with the Muslim world.
3. The Israeli prime minister himself felt the need to keep hidden his concession of a six-month time limit for Washington's dialogue with Tehran. On the one hand, he persuaded Obama for the first time to accept a time limit for those talks; on the other, it is longer than Israel thinks safe,
DEBKAfile's Washington sources note that Netanyahu convinced the president to agree to an Iranian deadline while standing by his refusal to endorse Obama's "two state" solution of the Palestinian issue in return.
Still, he knew the deadline would be hard to sell at home, especially after Iran successfully test-fired its first accurate long-range surface to surface missile while he was still in Washington.
Obama and Netanyahu put a couple of safety valves put in place.
One of the two joint working groups they set up, headed by US national security adviser James Jones, will meet regularly to keep track of progress of the bilateral US-Iranian negotiations and report back to the White House and Jerusalem.
(The second team, headed by Middle East envoy George Mitchell, will be in charge of the Palestinian issue.)
It stand to reason that the US president and Israeli prime minister did not exhaust this burning issue in their initial, ice-breaking conversation and will remain in touch.
But Netanyahu may find it hard to explain why he promised no Israeli surprise attacks against Iran for six months – even though major disruptions loom: Lebanon's pro-Western government may be overthrown by its June 7 election or thereafter, Iranian long-range missiles introduced to the Gaza Strip, Mahmoud Abbas' new Palestinian government in Ramallah collapse, and Tehran will continue its shock tactics.
To shift the focus from his consent to US diplomacy with Iran, Netanyahu spoke passionately about Jerusalem upon his return although, according to our sources, its status was not under assault at his White House talks.
"The flag that flies over the Kotel is the Israeli flag... Our holy places, the Temple Mount -- will remain under Israeli sovereignty forever,” he told yeshiva students.
And “Jerusalem was always ours, will always be ours, and will never again be divided,” he vowed at the annual Jerusalem Day state ceremony on Ammunition Hill, Jerusalem, honoring the soldiers who fell in the Six-Day War in 1967.
Read more...
But again, probably LONG TERM SOLUTION takes LONGER TIME to achieve...Let's wait till 4th June to determine this is true or just plain speculation...
DEBKAfile lifts fog from the Obama-Netanyahu balance sheet (Debka)
Almost a week after Israeli prime minister held his first talks with US president Barack Obama at the White House, last Tuesday, May 18, some of the fog obscuring their content is finally beginning to clear.
The White House was forced to rebut a major misapprehension, that the US president would use his June 4 speech in Cairo to launch a new Middle East peace plan.
There never was such a plan, DEBKAfile's Washington sources confirm. Once that misapprehension was removed, some of the subjects really discussed by the two leaders hoved into sight - or proved false.
For instance, Obama did not demand the repartition of Jerusalem; neither was he keen to pursue the Palestinian issue at all at this time. Most of all, he was after space to engage in negotiation with Tehran without the threat of a surprise Israeli military strike against Iran's nuclear sites hanging over the talks.
Who then had an interest in running the false hare of an Obama Middle East plan?
1. At some point, the White House preferred unclarity to an admission that the president had backed away from his pressure on Israel to negotiate a two-state peace accord with the Palestinians. In fact, Obama was persuaded by his awareness that Palestinian divisions are too profound to hope for results. The "two-state" formula is applicable in the foreseeable future only to the Palestinians - Hamas which rules the Gaza Strip and Fatah which dominates the West Bank Palestinian Authority.
For now, the US president has decided practically that it would be better to stick to the less ambitious goals of developing the West Bank economy, its governing institutions and a security apparatus, exactly as advised by Netanyahu and special Middle East Quartet envoy former UK prime minister Tony Blair. If some day Tehran and Damascus decide to join forces with Washington – a diminishing prospect at present – the US president can go back to promoting a united Palestinian state alongside Israel.
But Obama is keen on developing an expanded road map to bring moderate Arab governments into the peace process with Israel and start introducing normal relations on a regional level.
It may be assumed that the US president and Israeli prime minister did not exhaust this burning issue in their initial, ice-breaking conversation and they will remain in touch. Furthermore, these moves remain to be hammered out in Washington and in follow-up talks with the Israelis. Meanwhile, Egyptian president Hosni Mubarak, a pivotal figure in this initiative, is rumored to be very ill after cancelling his visit to Washington.
2. Jordan's Abdullah II's advisers at court were responsible for planting the tale of a new Obama peace initiative to be purportedly unveiled on June 4. Its provisions, such as making Jerusalem the twin Palestinian-Israeli capital, were to be imposed on Israel.
This fairy story was picked up by Israel's often anti-Netanyahu media, although its source was dubious - the London-based Arabic al Quds al-Arabi, which is a platform for radical Muslim quarters such as Hamas. The fiction gained wings from the lack of authoritative information on the content of the face-to-face conversation between Obama and Netanyahu last Tuesday, May 18.
This forced White House spokesman Robert Gibbs to produce a damper. Friday, May 22, Gibbs said "I know there has been some conjecture that included in this speech will be some detailed comprehensive Mideast peace plan, and it is not the intention nor was it ever the intention of this speech."
He made it clear that Obama's words would deal with Washington's relations with the Muslim world.
3. The Israeli prime minister himself felt the need to keep hidden his concession of a six-month time limit for Washington's dialogue with Tehran. On the one hand, he persuaded Obama for the first time to accept a time limit for those talks; on the other, it is longer than Israel thinks safe,
DEBKAfile's Washington sources note that Netanyahu convinced the president to agree to an Iranian deadline while standing by his refusal to endorse Obama's "two state" solution of the Palestinian issue in return.
Still, he knew the deadline would be hard to sell at home, especially after Iran successfully test-fired its first accurate long-range surface to surface missile while he was still in Washington.
Obama and Netanyahu put a couple of safety valves put in place.
One of the two joint working groups they set up, headed by US national security adviser James Jones, will meet regularly to keep track of progress of the bilateral US-Iranian negotiations and report back to the White House and Jerusalem.
(The second team, headed by Middle East envoy George Mitchell, will be in charge of the Palestinian issue.)
It stand to reason that the US president and Israeli prime minister did not exhaust this burning issue in their initial, ice-breaking conversation and will remain in touch.
But Netanyahu may find it hard to explain why he promised no Israeli surprise attacks against Iran for six months – even though major disruptions loom: Lebanon's pro-Western government may be overthrown by its June 7 election or thereafter, Iranian long-range missiles introduced to the Gaza Strip, Mahmoud Abbas' new Palestinian government in Ramallah collapse, and Tehran will continue its shock tactics.
To shift the focus from his consent to US diplomacy with Iran, Netanyahu spoke passionately about Jerusalem upon his return although, according to our sources, its status was not under assault at his White House talks.
"The flag that flies over the Kotel is the Israeli flag... Our holy places, the Temple Mount -- will remain under Israeli sovereignty forever,” he told yeshiva students.
And “Jerusalem was always ours, will always be ours, and will never again be divided,” he vowed at the annual Jerusalem Day state ceremony on Ammunition Hill, Jerusalem, honoring the soldiers who fell in the Six-Day War in 1967.
Read more...
Sunday, May 24, 2009
Israel gov't too extreme to make peace - Syria's Assad (Reuters)
Just imagine: If you are living in the constant bombardment of loose missiles & uncertain when your relatives, neighbors or siblings might be the one getting the attack. How “aggressive” you will be to pursue Peace if can come across it?
I may not even be the right person to comment on this as I am fortunate enough not living in the conflict land but if you were to ask me…I will be even more aggressive in protecting my family or home.
But one thing I find it difficult is that human being is not a “compromise” type. They want to have “Something” first before agree to sit down and talk. If there is “no food on the table, then sorry, I am not interested”. They said, it takes a Big heart to be a Good leader but if you have big heart then you will be perceived as weak.
I know my post this time is full of contradiction but I do hope that one day we can see peace there…
Israel gov't too extreme to make peace - Syria's Assad (Reuters)
DAMASCUS (Reuters) - Syrian President Bashar al-Assad cast doubt on Saturday on reaching Middle East peace under what he termed as an "extreme" Israeli government but did not rule out resuming talks with the Jewish state.
Syria's President Bashar al-Assad gestures during the opening of the 36th Session of the Council of Foreign Ministers (CFM) of the Member States of the Organization of the Islamic Conference (OIC) in Damascus May 23, 2009.
"The failure of the peace process so far has clearly shown that Israel is the obstacle ... How can a state that was founded on illegal occupation and continues to murder the original inhabitants work toward peace?" Assad said
How can a country that has chosen the most extreme government in its history be a partner for peace?" he added.
Assad, who was addressing a foreign ministers' meeting of the Organisation of the Islamic Conference (OIC), was referring to the Israeli government of right-wing Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, which took office two months ago.
"We the Arab nations, and especially Syria will not change our view about peace as a strategic goal, including the full return of occupied lands," Assad said in the Syrian capital.
Syria, which along with Iran supports the Palestinian Islamist group Hamas, held four rounds of Turkish mediated indirect talks with Israel in 2008 that were formally suspended during the Israeli invasion of Gaza in December.
Damascus was among the most vocal critics of the invasion, which enhanced its position as a self-declared champion of Arab rights, to the ire of the U.S. backed governments of Egypt and Saudi Arabia.
Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov attended the OIC meeting and separately met Hamas leader Khaled Meshaal, who lives in exile in Syria, at the Russian embassy.
Lavrov said that Russia believes in the need to maintain contacts with the Palestinian group, despite a cooling of ties between the two sides.
NO "GIFT" TO ISRAEL
Assad urged the 57-nation OIC not to offer Israel what he described as concessions, hinting at remarks by Jordan's King Abdullah that U.S. President Barack Obama was promoting a Middle East peace plan that could involve normalisation of ties between Israel and all Muslim nations.
Obama is due to address the Muslim world from Egypt in June, but Egypt's foreign minister did not attend the OIC meeting in the Syrian capital.
"Israel must not be rewarded for its crimes. Any progress on relations, if they exist, must be tied to Israel committing to a just and comprehensive peace, restoring the legitimate rights and withdrawing from the lands it occupies," Assad said.
Syrian political commentator Marwan Kabalan told al-Jazeera Television that Assad's aim was to make sure Obama's speech on June 4 does not leave Syria, which advocates a tough line against Israel, appearing isolated.
Ekmeleddin Ihsanoglu, the OIC secretary general, said that Muslim countries "cannot offer Israel a gift with Israel refusing to accept international resolutions and the rights of the Palestinian people."
Obama has sought to assure Muslims that the United States was not at war with them but U.S. support for Israel does not go down well with most Muslim countries, which largely avoid ties with Israel.
U.S. officials told their Syrian counterparts this month that Obama, who has placed Middle East peace high on his agenda, was committed to seeking a deal between Syria and Israel, in contrast to a less enthusiastic position by his predecessor George W. Bush.
Netanyahu offered after meeting Obama on Wednesday to restart the talks with Syria without conditions. Syrian Foreign Minister Walid Moualem said any resumption would be useless without an Israeli commitment to withdraw from the Syrian Golan Heights, which Israel has occupied for the last 42 years.
Copyright © 2008 Reuters
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I may not even be the right person to comment on this as I am fortunate enough not living in the conflict land but if you were to ask me…I will be even more aggressive in protecting my family or home.
But one thing I find it difficult is that human being is not a “compromise” type. They want to have “Something” first before agree to sit down and talk. If there is “no food on the table, then sorry, I am not interested”. They said, it takes a Big heart to be a Good leader but if you have big heart then you will be perceived as weak.
I know my post this time is full of contradiction but I do hope that one day we can see peace there…
Israel gov't too extreme to make peace - Syria's Assad (Reuters)
DAMASCUS (Reuters) - Syrian President Bashar al-Assad cast doubt on Saturday on reaching Middle East peace under what he termed as an "extreme" Israeli government but did not rule out resuming talks with the Jewish state.
Syria's President Bashar al-Assad gestures during the opening of the 36th Session of the Council of Foreign Ministers (CFM) of the Member States of the Organization of the Islamic Conference (OIC) in Damascus May 23, 2009.
"The failure of the peace process so far has clearly shown that Israel is the obstacle ... How can a state that was founded on illegal occupation and continues to murder the original inhabitants work toward peace?" Assad said
How can a country that has chosen the most extreme government in its history be a partner for peace?" he added.
Assad, who was addressing a foreign ministers' meeting of the Organisation of the Islamic Conference (OIC), was referring to the Israeli government of right-wing Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, which took office two months ago.
"We the Arab nations, and especially Syria will not change our view about peace as a strategic goal, including the full return of occupied lands," Assad said in the Syrian capital.
Syria, which along with Iran supports the Palestinian Islamist group Hamas, held four rounds of Turkish mediated indirect talks with Israel in 2008 that were formally suspended during the Israeli invasion of Gaza in December.
Damascus was among the most vocal critics of the invasion, which enhanced its position as a self-declared champion of Arab rights, to the ire of the U.S. backed governments of Egypt and Saudi Arabia.
Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov attended the OIC meeting and separately met Hamas leader Khaled Meshaal, who lives in exile in Syria, at the Russian embassy.
Lavrov said that Russia believes in the need to maintain contacts with the Palestinian group, despite a cooling of ties between the two sides.
NO "GIFT" TO ISRAEL
Assad urged the 57-nation OIC not to offer Israel what he described as concessions, hinting at remarks by Jordan's King Abdullah that U.S. President Barack Obama was promoting a Middle East peace plan that could involve normalisation of ties between Israel and all Muslim nations.
Obama is due to address the Muslim world from Egypt in June, but Egypt's foreign minister did not attend the OIC meeting in the Syrian capital.
"Israel must not be rewarded for its crimes. Any progress on relations, if they exist, must be tied to Israel committing to a just and comprehensive peace, restoring the legitimate rights and withdrawing from the lands it occupies," Assad said.
Syrian political commentator Marwan Kabalan told al-Jazeera Television that Assad's aim was to make sure Obama's speech on June 4 does not leave Syria, which advocates a tough line against Israel, appearing isolated.
Ekmeleddin Ihsanoglu, the OIC secretary general, said that Muslim countries "cannot offer Israel a gift with Israel refusing to accept international resolutions and the rights of the Palestinian people."
Obama has sought to assure Muslims that the United States was not at war with them but U.S. support for Israel does not go down well with most Muslim countries, which largely avoid ties with Israel.
U.S. officials told their Syrian counterparts this month that Obama, who has placed Middle East peace high on his agenda, was committed to seeking a deal between Syria and Israel, in contrast to a less enthusiastic position by his predecessor George W. Bush.
Netanyahu offered after meeting Obama on Wednesday to restart the talks with Syria without conditions. Syrian Foreign Minister Walid Moualem said any resumption would be useless without an Israeli commitment to withdraw from the Syrian Golan Heights, which Israel has occupied for the last 42 years.
Copyright © 2008 Reuters
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