Palestinians blocking peace with Israel

AFP:

Israel's Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, who has infuriated Washington by expanding settlements in east Jerusalem, on Sunday blamed the Palestinians for blocking US peace efforts.

His remarks came after the Palestinians reiterated their refusal to hold even indirect talks without a complete settlement freeze and in the wake of a flare-up of violence in the Hamas-ruled Gaza Strip.

"We continue to see that the Palestinians are hardening their positions. They do not show any sign of moderation," Netanyahu said at the start of a weekly cabinet meeting.

Palestinian president Mahmud Abbas on Saturday ruled out holding even indirect talks with Israel unless it freezes settlement construction in the West Bank including mostly Arab east Jerusalem, annexed by Israel in 1967.

"We cannot resume indirect negotiations as long as Israel maintains its settlement policy and the status quo," the Western-backed leader said at the opening of a two-day Arab summit in the Libyan city of Sirte.

"There won't be any (peace) agreement that does not guarantee an end to the occupation, starting with Jerusalem, because there is no sense in having a Palestinian state that does not have Jerusalem as its capital," he said.

Netanyahu said the annual meeting, which this year is aimed in large part at condemning Israeli policies in the Holy City, was unlikely to support US-led efforts to revive negotiations suspended over a year ago.

"I do not think that the discussions by the Arab League can support this process, but we will show restraint and continue our contacts with the Americans in order to restart the talks," he said.

...

The refusal to talk is a cover for the fact that the Palestinians have nothing of value to offer the Israelis. They are not interested in peace and their claims for Jerusalem are just a front to avoid peace. That Obama is buying their BS says much about his lack of comprehension of the issues and the problems in the Middle East.

Comments

  1. Anybody with any sense would see that it is the Israelis who do not want any peace. Their arrogant behavior towards Biden, and other world leaders, is just a tiny example of their illogical behavior.

    I've been to Palestine and Israel. The behavior I saw towards the Palestinians, was only comparable to that of South Africans during Apartheid.

    Kind of funny the race of people exacting this racist behavior, are a group of people who have done nothing but complain about the abuse they've received the last couple of centuries.

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