Will America never learn to keep out of places where they are not wanted. To agree to give military aid to one side in the hope of defeating an elected representative of the people is going too far. Whether we like Hamas or not is not important...they were elected by the people who are plainly frustrated at being kept under siege by a militant Israel and it seems their own countrymen (Fatah).

I fear that until Israel and the USA learn that talking is better than force of arms we we see more bloodshed and pain.

An eye for an eye ends up with a world of blind people. Let's put down our guns, planes and rockets and start the real job of talking to understand each other...we don't need to be friends but we do need to learn to respect others even when they don't agree with us.

DUBLIN, June 19 (Reuters) - Former U.S. President Jimmy Carter said on Tuesday Washington's support for the Palestinian Fatah group and the blocking of aid to Gaza were part of a mistaken policy aimed at dividing Palestinians.

Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas of Fatah dismissed Hamas from the government last week and formed a new cabinet in the occupied West Bank after gunmen from the Islamist group took over the Gaza Strip. In a bid to shore up Abbas, the United States and the European Union pledged on Monday to lift a 15-month old embargo on the Palestinians imposed after Hamas won elections and rejected their calls to recognise Israel and renounce violence. Carter, on a visit to Dublin, said the United States and Israel had done "everything they could to prevent accommodation between Hamas and Fatah". "Lately, the United States has been giving military aid to Fatah in order to conquer Hamas in Gaza," Carter told reporters after addressing a human rights forum in Dublin. "Fatah could not prevail because of the fervent commitment of some of the Hamas fighters and because of their discipline," he added. Ismail Haniyeh of Hamas has said he still considers a 3-month-old unity coalition, in which he is prime minister, as the legitimate Palestinian government and accuses Abbas of participating in a U.S.-led plot to overthrow him. Fatah has rejected a Hamas overture for "dialogue" and banned all contacts with the group. Israeli and Western officials say Israel plans to tighten a financial clampdown on the Hamas-ruled Gaza Strip that would choke off all but humanitarian and basic supplies. Carter, who brokered the Camp David accords between Israel and Egypt in 1978, said moves to give Palestinians assistance in the West Bank was an attempt to "reward them", while continuing to "punish" the 1.5 million aid-dependent Palestinians in Gaza. "This effort to divide Palestine into two peoples now, I think it is a step in the wrong direction," Carter said. "There is no effort being made outside to bring the two together." BUSH CRITICISED U.S. President George W. Bush and Israeli Prime Minister Ehud Olmert met in Washington on Tuesday and pledged to work together to strengthen Abbas against Hamas Islamists. Carter, who was president from 1977-1981 and won the Nobel Peace Prize in 2002 for his charitable work, has been highly critical of Bush's Middle East policies. In May he described Bush's presidency as "the worst in history". Carter told reporters that U.S-run detention camps, such as Guantanamo Bay in Cuba and U.S. anti-terrorism laws, were unacceptable even in the wake of the September 11, 2001 attacks. "This departure on human rights is completely incompatible with all the predecessors in the White House," he said. "It's excused inadequately by the aftermath of 9/11 that the terrorism threat is so great that we can abandon our basic American principles on human rights," he said. "I strongly disagree with that."

http://www.alertnet.org/thenews/newsdesk/L19320798.htm

 

GAZA CITY, Sep 15 (IPS ) -

A strike call has trapped thousands of teachers between Fatah unions and a Hamas government.

The strike in Gaza called by the Palestine Teachers' Union -- a non-elected body supported by the government of Palestine Authority (PA) President Mahmoud Abbas in the West Bank -- continues into its third week.

Of the Palestinian territories, Gaza strip is ruled by a Hamas government and the West Bank (that actually lies to the east of Gaza strip but is so called because it is the west bank of Jordan river) by the Fatah Party led by Abbas.

Teachers last went on strike a year ago because of Israeli and Western sanctions that choked funds as a punishment for takeover of the Gaza administration by Hamas, after it won the election earlier in 2006. But this strike has brought one set of Palestinians against another.

Teachers in Gaza say they were ordered by the Ramallah-based Palestinian Authority (PA) to stay home or have their salaries withheld, and even face dismissal. And at the same time, the Hamas government threatened to sack striking teachers. Hamas controls administration of Gaza, but PA pays the salaries.

"I was informed by an official that I had been dismissed for not supporting the strike," Mussa al-Astal, a social studies teacher at a secondary school in Khan Younis, a city located in the south of Gaza Strip, told IPS. Astal says he also found his name listed on a Fatah-affiliated website.

Palestinian minister for the media Riad al-Malki in Ramallah denied the allegation. "We did not call for a strike, and there will be no cutting off of salaries for Gaza's employees." But many teachers have found that salaries have not been paid into their banks.

Several PA backed unions are working now against the Hamas government. Hamas has immediately called for new teachers to substitute those on strike, but has not found many with the necessary qualifications and experience.

Jameel Shehada, general secretary of the Teachers' Union, said the strike had been called to protest against "the actions Hamas took against the teachers," including the transfer of many teachers in order to appoint Hamas supporters in their place. Deputy minister for education in Gaza Mohamed Abu Shoqeir denies this. "The transfer of teachers was an administrative issue, enforced after we saw that just 16 percent students succeeded in some secondary schools last year."

Fatima Zaqzouq, a school head in Khan Younis, says the transfer of teachers "was not a well thought-out and rational decision. It served only political interests. It's the students and the people who lose out." Half the teachers in her school were absent, she said, frightened by the threat of salary cuts.

The teachers strike in Gaza has hit the opening of the school year. The strike has affected all 282 government-run schools in the Gaza Strip, and about 300,000 students. The 213 schools run by the United Nations, and their 197,000 students, are not affected.

But despite the strike, students' attendance has been close to 100 percent, even if studies are well short. "The first day, we had just half a day in school, and half of the teachers were away," said 16-year-old student Isra al-Najjar. "We are not happy with this strike."

Hamas-affiliated police have called many teachers to police stations, and some were forced to go to work, according to the independent Palestinian Centre for Human Rights (PCHR).

PCHR says the PA threat of salary cuts is illegal, and serves the interests of Fatah rather than the demands of employees. The move also raises questions whether the international money coming in is for the needs of teachers or the games of political parties, it says.

http://www.care2.com/c2c/groups/disc_post_reply.html?gpp=10172&pst=982267

"Gaza and the West Bank must unite, otherwise there will be no Palestinian state with Jerusalem as its capital. But we will not use force to do that. There are contacts for reconciliation being conducted by the Egyptians, and in the end an Arab proposal will be presented, with the support of the Arab League."

Are you aware of the fact that if Israel releases the Hamas members of parliament as part of a deal to release [kidnapped IDF soldier] Gilad Shalit, there is a good chance that the Palestinian parliament will not extend your term?

"Yes, but without any connection to my term, I'm not opposed to their release. I have even demanded of Olmert more than once to release the speaker of the parliament, Aziz Dweik of Hamas. There is no reason to leave them in prison, and we have made it clear to Israel that in the context of any peace agreement, all the Palestinian prisoners will be released."

What do you think of the rise of Al Qaida in Gaza?

"I was the first to warn about it, and we are opposed to it. But you must understand that you have to remove the siege of the Gaza Strip in order to stop the strengthening of these extremist factors. You must open the trade crossings to the Strip, because distress will only strengthen organizations like Al Qaida."

What do you think of the calls by senior Palestinian officials, in light of the failure of the negotiations, to dismantle the PA, transfer responsibility to Israel and establish one state for two nations?

"That is an issue that came up in the Arab League, too. But in my opinion, we should stick to implementing a solution of two states for two nations. That is the best proposal. But you must not prevent this solution and push people into a corner. A continuation of your dangerous policy in the West Bank - construction in the settlements, the roadblocks, the raids on West Bank cities - will only distance the two-state solution."

"We don't want one state for two nations, and various people who are doing that, including Abu Ala, are doing it out of despair. You must treat the Palestinians with respect, as full partners, human beings like you. If you believe in occupation and the Palestinian partner becomes irrelevant, no Israeli will feel secure."

Did you make a mistake in the second intifada when you turned to violence?

"I have said this in the past. We made a mistake when we turned the intifada into an armed struggle, and I will do everything possible so that there won't be a third, armed intifada. But you mustn't push people into acting violently."

The interview takes place mostly in English. Occasionally MK Tibi whispers into the ear of the rais and the conversation continues. The secretary of the PA, Tayeb Abed al-Rahim, one of people closest to Abu Mazen, is present at the interview and adds his comments.

When will you meet with U.S. President George W. Bush, and what will you tell him at your last meeting?

"I'll be meeting with him on September 26, and I'll listen to what he has to say. I admire him very much. He did very good work, and nevertheless we did not succeed in reaching an agreement. It's not his mistake, nor mine. As far as he is concerned, he made the required effort."

Did you think that 15 years after Oslo we would still be sitting here and talking about the chances for a peace agreement?

"It's unbelievable, it's beyond any imagination that we haven't succeeded in reaching an agreement until now. But even today, I'm convinced that I would have signed the Oslo Accords. I risked my life for peace and if I have to pay for it with my life, that's a negligible price. I don't regret the Oslo Accords. Twenty years before the agreement I believed in peace with the Israelis, and I still believe in it."

http://www.haaretz.com/hasen/spages/1020725.html

related:

Jordan's king meets Abbas, backs PA on Jerusalem and refugees

see also:

Abbas: Jerusalem, right of return are our inalienable rights

"I tend to agree with King Abdullah. We can reach an agreement because the outline is known, and it is not clear to me why there is no progress. Perhaps because of internal political disputes in Israel. I can say that the Americans continue to play a central role, and are even eager for us to reach an agreement by the end of the year. They are convinced we are capable of that."

We have heard many different versions about the percentage of the area of the West Bank Israel is willing to transfer to the Palestinian state. Could you tell us the exact percentage?

Abu Mazen smiles. "We have been presented with more than one proposal. I can tell you that, among other things, we raised the demand to conduct negotiations over no-man's land and not only over the entire West Bank." [One example is the Latrun area.]

Have you told the Israelis that they have to refer to previous documents, to previous negotiations like those conducted in Taba in 2001?

"Israel now claims that those talks were conducted by other teams. 'It's not us. It's Yossi Beilin,' they say."

Abbas looks very excited when he mentions the 2002 Arab peace initiative, in which 22 Arab countries agreed to normalize relations with Israel if Israel withdraws to the 1967 boundaries. He asks his secretary of many years, Intisar, to bring the version of the Arab initiative adopted by the Islamic summit conference. The paper is decorated with the flags of various Islamic countries, including Iran.

"Yes, yes, even Iran agreed at the time [2002 - before Mahmoud Ahmadinejad's era] to the principles of the Arab initiative, and never regretted it," he says. "I presented this paper to Olmert, who didn't react to it. Unfortunately, to date there has been no discussion of the initiative in the Israeli government. You should remember that this is the first time even the king of Saudi Arabia, who is the guardian of the places holy to Islam, enlisted for the sake of solving the conflict."

Is it clear that on the issue of the right of return, the refugees will return only to the areas of the Palestinian state?

"Not at all. This issue is not at all clear. There are today five million Palestinian refugees whose forefathers were expelled from the area of Israel, not from the West Bank and Gaza. We understand that if we demand of you that all five million return to Israel, the State of Israel would be destroyed. But we must talk about compromise and see to what numbers you can agree.

"We have to talk about Israeli recognition of its responsibility for the refugee problem, and then discuss the right of return in practice. The Palestinians who don't return to Israel can return to Palestine. If they decide to remain in the countries where they are living, they will receive compensation, as will the countries that absorb them. There is a central issue that Israel tends to ignore: the assets of the absentees. That is a very important issue, almost the basis of the problem.

"We intend to hold talks with Israel about the number of refugees who will return to its area. I am criticized for not demanding the return of all five million, but I say that we will demand the return of a reasonable number of refugees to Israel. The Arab peace initiative also discusses that - a solution to the refugee problem has to be agreed upon with Israel, according to UN General Assembly resolution 194 [from 1948]."

Foreign Minister Livni said that when the Palestinians erase the word "nakba" from their lexicon [the "catastrophe," the expulsion and flight of the Palestinians in 1947-1948], there will be peace.

"Can I forget the nakba, which happened to so many people and even to me? [Abbas is a refugee from Safed.] That is our memory. Just as I can't ask you to forget your national memory, you can't demand that of me."

President Shimon Peres claims you said that you would oppose the participation of Hamas in the January 2010 elections, if it does not recognize agreements with Israel and international decisions.

"Let's put it differently. If we want to establish a unity government of professionals, according to the Arab League's proposal, it must honor all the commitments and agreements that we have signed, like the road map. We cannot agree to any initiative that does not accept that. And of course, you have to accept the Arab peace initiative."

When does your term end? Hamas claims in January 2009 and not in January 2010, as you claim.

"I think that the elections for parliament and the presidency should take place together, in January 2010. We will decide, and issue a presidential order accordingly. And we will definitely demand that the elections be held in Jerusalem as well."

Will you run in the next elections?

"I don't know yet. It's too early to talk about that."

Was it a mistake to allow Hamas to participate in the 2006 elections?

"No, it was a good test as far as we're concerned. Had we rejected its participation we would have rejected a large part of the Palestinian people. Now, after the nation has come to know and experience Hamas, it will have to decide who to vote for."

Do you see a possibility of reconciliation between Hamas and Fatah, and unity between the West Bank and Gaza?

This post was modified from its original form on 15 Sep, 12:02

RAMALLAH - Perhaps it was the daytime fast and abstention from smoking during the holy month of Ramadan, and perhaps it was the conversation about the exhausting negotiations with Israel that caused Palestinian Authority President Mahmoud Abbas (Abu Mazen) to press the white button at least three times in the course of last Wednesday's interview.

Sa'id, his personal assistant, enters without a word, pulls out the packet and lights a cigarette for the president. Abu Mazen's relaxed mood does not hint at all the troubles bombarding him from inside and out.

He dismisses the threats of colleagues, including the chairman of the Palestinian negotiation team Ahmed Qureia (Abu Ala) and rivals such as Prof. Sari Nusseibeh, to replace the negotiations over two states with a demand for equal rights between Israelis and Palestinians in one state. He also promises that, just as he opposed the second intifada, he will not support a third one.
The message is almost self-evident: Don't miss your opportunity with me. You won't have a partner like me. But on one point he is insistent: the right of return. Israel will have to absorb refugees in its territory, he emphasizes, following negotiations regarding their numbers.

He is aware of the arguments in Israel about his political weakness. "It's a good excuse for Israel not to fulfill its obligations," he says with a bitter smile. "I'm still reading in your newspaper that it won't be possible to reach a peace agreement because your prime minister, Ehud Olmert, is accused of corruption and I'm too weak. But even senior Israeli officials now admit that we are doing an excellent job."

Even Amos Gilad, the head of the diplomatic-security headquarters in the Defense Ministry, and a sharp critic of the PA?

"Even Amos Gilad. We have restored order to the West Bank cities, we are taking steps against anyone who tries to undermine security and stability, whether it is Hamas, Islamic Jihad or even Fatah. In Israel and in the United States they are well aware that the Palestinian security forces have prevented many attacks. We even dismantled Fatah's Al-Aqsa Martyrs' Brigades. Today there is one armed force and one authority in the field."

Abbas' situation in public opinion surveys conducted in the territories is better than ever. The chaos that reigned in the cities of the West Bank has been replaced by the Palestinian police. The security systems are garnering praise from those very senior Israeli officials who in the past leveled penetrating criticism against their functioning - including the head of the Shin Bet security service, the defense minister and generals in the Israel Defense Forces. The economic situation in the West Bank is also improving. And nevertheless, Abu Mazen knows that without a diplomatic agreement, all these achievements will evaporate and the Palestinians will return to Hamas' embrace.

Do you remember that Saturday, September 13, is the anniversary of the Oslo Accords?

"Unfortunately."

Why unfortunately?

"Because it didn't succeed. Fifteen years have passed since then, and we are still far from an agreement."

Olmert is about to resign. What do you feel on the personal level?

"I admire him very much and for over a year we've been working together. Now he is about to leave and we will honor what the Israeli public decides. We will conduct negotiations with any prime minister elected in Israel, and bid farewell to Olmert. But I intend to conduct negotiations with him until his last moment in the job."

It is evident that the elections for the leadership of Kadima are a source of great concern to those sitting in the Muqata, the PA's seat of government, in Ramallah. Abu Mazen's advisors are busy not only with issues related to Hamas and Fatah, but also with the attempt to guess who will win: Transportation Minister Shaul Mofaz or Foreign Minister Tzipi Livni. On this subject, as on others, MK Ahmed Tibi (Ra'am-Ta'al), who was present at the interview, serves as a guide for the PA president. In addition, Abbas makes sure to keep abreast of reports from the Israeli media.

Olmert said that we have never been so close to an agreement. Had he remained in the job would that have changed anything?

"I cannot say that 'an agreement is near' or 'not near' is the correct term to use, but it is doubtful whether we could have completed an agreement by the end of 2008 [as the sides promised at the Annapolis conference], even had he remained in the job. So far there has been no achievement in the negotiations. There are various proposals regarding borders and the refugee issue, but they have remained proposals only and all six central issues of the final status agreement [Jerusalem, borders, refugees, security, settlements and water] have remained open. I cannot say that there has been an agreement on a single issue. The gap between the sides is very large. We presented our ideas and demands regarding the six issues, and have yet to receive any answer from the Israeli side."

Jordan's King Abdullah said recently to a French newspaper that he is not convinced that Israel wants to solve the conflict, due to the absence of a long-term vision. Do you agree with that statement?



This post was modified from its original form on 15 Sep, 11:57

Islamic Resistance Movement, Hamas, slammed the Palestinian President, Mahmoud Abbas, for not demanding the Right of Return in a framework he reached with Israel’s Prime Minister Ehud Olmert, in which it states that the Palestinians would give up the Right of Return to their homeland which they were displaced from by Zionist militias in 1948.

The movement said that any agreement which disregards the basic rights of the Palestinians, and their internationally-guaranteed Right of Return will not be accepted by the Palestinian people.

Fawzi Barhoum, Hamas media spokesperson, said in a press statement on Saturday that voiding the Right of Return is the result of secret talks with the “Zionist enemy” and completely nullifies the Palestinian struggle and sacrifices over the years.

Barhoum added that no one is allowed to void the Right of Return or any fundamental issue which affects the Palestinian people, and added that the refugees have the right to return to their homeland.

“Abbas is turning his back to millions of displaced Palestinians”, Barhoum said, “Abbas is turning his back on the national consensus and is going with the American-Zionist agendas”.  

The Hamas leader also said that the outcome of the secret or non-secret talks with Israel is very dangerous and will not be accepted by the Palestinian people who will resist and foil these agendas”.

He considered the talks between Abbas and Israel as a “crime against the Palestinian people” and added that the Palestinians will not recognize the outcome of these talks.  

http://imemc.org/article/56957

Reconciliation talks top Hamas agenda

Damascus: Hamas political chief Khalid Mesha’al yesterday demanded the swapping of 1,000 Palestinian prisoners in return for Israeli soldier Gilad Shalit.

Yesterday’s speech at a Ramadan gathering was Mesha’al’s second appearance in Damascus since rumours circulated that he had left for Sudan in Sep-tember.

Mesha’al responded to an earlier statement by Arab League Secretary-General Amr Mousa, who expressed anger at Palestinian infighting, specifically hinting at the behaviour of Hamas, claiming that sanctions against them were being discussed within the Arab League.

Mesha’al warned, “Do not back Hamas into a corner. Pressure and seige have been tried … and Hamas remained steadfast.” He also called for a prisoner swap “as soon as possible” to release “more than a thousand” Palestinian prisoners from Israeli jails, in exchange for the soldier.

“Hamas does not want to postpone negotiations on the prisoner exchange or demand new conditions. But we refuse to be blackmailed by Israel.”

Israel, he alleged, only wanted to release 450 Palestinians. He then added, “We favour national reconciliation as long as it is conducted without external pressures and for a dialogue that puts all issues on the table.”

The Palestinian leader deemed it unfair to blame the Palestinians for the schism and “ignore the US and Israeli role”. He also called for presidential elections in the Palestinian National Authority (PNA) before current President Mahmud Abbas leaves office in January 2009, claiming that Hamas will respect the electorate’s decision.

On the event of a four-nation summit in Damascus last week, rumours circulated in the Arabic press, spearheaded by the Kuwaiti daily Al Rai, saying that Mesha’al had left his residence in Syria and was headed for Sudan. According to the report, there was an “undeclared agreement between Syrian authorities and Mesha’al stipulating that the latter should leave Syrian territory”.

Mesha’al had visited Sudan last August, expressing solidarity with President Omar Al Bashir. Reportedly, the Palestinian leader went to Khartoum before the Syrians asked him to leave, given the progress in indirect Syrian-Israeli talks, held in Turkey. Mesha’al feared that if a deal was struck, the Syrians would ask him to leave. Hamas immediately denied the rumours. A spokesman for the Sudanese President added that he had no information on Mesha’al setting up base in Sudan.

Denial

Denying the rumours, Mesha’al showed up at a reception at the Orient Club in Damascus on September 9, on the occasion of opening a branch for the Jerusalem International Association in Damascus. The Syrian press ran front page photos of him, seated on the same VIP table with Buthaina Sha’aban, the media adviser to President Bashar Al Assad.

A Palestinian source in Damascus, who stands at arm’s length from both Hamas and Fateh, noted, “Abu Al Walid [Mesha’al] is a smart man. He came here [Damascus] nearly 10 years ago, when the situation was different. The Syrians will never ask him to leave.”

The source said the Syrians did not ask Mesha’al to leave during the most difficult years of the Bush regime, when it would have been much appreciated by the White House, or to close down the media offices of Hamas in Syria.

“If he will leave it has to come from him, not from the Syrians. And Abu Al Walid will make sure never to become a burdensome guest for Damascus. Channels must remain open between Syria and Hamas, so that even if Syria signs peace, it can use its influence to broker dialogue between Palestinian factions,” the source said.

Abbas will stay on

Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas said in an interview published on Sunday he will remain in office until 2010, a decision likely to stoke tensions with Hamas rivals.

Hamas, which defeated Fatah in the 2006 polls, says Abbas’s term ends on January 9, 2009.

"I think that the elections for parliament and the presidency should take place together, in 2010. We will issue a presidential order accordingly," Abbas told Israel’s Haaretz newspaper.

http://www.gulfnews.com/region/Middle_East/10244962.html