Are the Israelis intentionally trying to derail progress on President Bush’s trip to the Palestinian territories and Israel – his first visit to the country? According to this op-ed article from the largest newspaper on Palestinian territory, Alhayat Aljadeeda, the Israelis are introducing issues of dispute and causing turmoil that have never been part of the peace talks, so that President Bush will be too busy putting out fires to make any real progress.
“Israel is preparing for President Bush’s visit by reshuffling the cards and by demonstrating that there are problems that were not included in any discussions before, such as the verbal escalation over political and security relations with Egypt!!!”
By Yehia Rbah, Translated By Jenny Oliver, Palestine – Alhayat Aljadeeda – Original Article (Arabic)
It appears that the Israeli ruling coalition led by Ehud Olmert isn’t satisfied with the bloody military escalation in the Gaza Strip that amounted to eight air-raids in one day. The air-raids target civilians, such as the Fayyad family [photo, right], as well as resistance fighters and homes. Additionally, dozens have been injured and abducted and the vicious encroachment of Jewish settlements continues. Meanwhile, statements by Foreign Minister Tzipi Livni and Defense Minister Ehud Barak have roiled relations with Egypt, which shows the real trend of Israeli policy.
[Editor’s Note: Israel has complained to Egypt that it isn’t doing enough to stop weapons smuggling into the Hamas-cntrolled Gaza strip. Foreign Minister Livni said on Monday, “What they [the Egyptians] are doing at Philadelphi is deplorable and problematic.” Egypt has promised to end the smuggling and says it is doing all it can].
This all shows quite clearly that the Israeli government is intent on putting huge obstacles in the path of George W. Bush’s visit to the region on the 9th of this month. His visit will not be confined to Israel and Palestine, as he will also tour the region in general. But the focus for this visit is to promote the opportunities for peace opened up after Annapolis conference and the donor’s conference held in Paris. However, both before and after the two conferences, Israel has been in a hurry to frustrate the peace process by setting off land mines one by one in the path of expectation for peace. The first explosion was the continued building of the Har Homa settlement in Jabal Abu Gheim, near Jerusalem .
Then came a series of bizarre decisions that put the Israeli army back in control of parts of the Gaza Strip, initiating an escalating series of assassinations and raids. These mini-invasions represent interference with plans for Palestinian cities, towns and villages in West Bank, developed by the government of [Palestinian Authority Prime Minister], Dr. Salam Fayad. The Israeli raid on the West Bank city of Nablus, in which a number of civilians were killed, is a violent and negative intervention by Israel. The type of security desired by Palestinians differs radically from that sought by Israel. We want security for our people and our institutions. We want our livelihoods to be secure and security in the region. But Israel is not at all concerned with these things. Why else would the Israeli intervention be so openly shameless and aggressive?Israel is preparing for President Bush’s visit by reshuffling the cards and by demonstrating that there are problems that were not included in any discussions before, such as the verbal escalation over political and security relations with Egypt!!! Israel is working to tangle all these issues into one big pile, so that the issue of settlements is considered at the same level as [Muslim] Pilgrims at the Rafah Border Crossing [between Israel and Egypt ] and the tunnels under the Rafah Crossing [used for weapons smuggling] are to be considered as significant as the final status negotiations. So Bush will find himself calling for solutions to new issues and breakdowns that were never on the table before.
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