U.S.: BALL IN PALESTINIANS' COURT
IT'S ONLY TALK, AND IT WON'T LAST, BUT IT'S BETTER THAN IMMEDIATE DEMANDS FOR MORE UNILATERAL CONCESSIONS FROM ISRAEL.
U.S. Says PA Must Disarm Hamas
Assistant Secretary of State for Near Eastern Affairs David Welch said Wednesday that it is critical that the Palestinian Authority disarm Hamas and other terrorist organizations in order to take advantage of the opportunity for progress toward peace presented by the Israeli withdrawal from Gaza. "In the road map, there is a requirement to take steps toward the dismantlement of the terror organizations. Hamas is for us a terror organization. I would expect that the PA would do those things. We have made those requirements clear to them," Welch said. "Security is the beginning, the middle and the end, and security cannot be had either for the people in those areas or for those who live around them if there is a variety of armed organizations that are allowed to operate." (State Department)
Assistant Secretary of State for Near Eastern Affairs David Welch said Wednesday that it is critical that the Palestinian Authority disarm Hamas and other terrorist organizations in order to take advantage of the opportunity for progress toward peace presented by the Israeli withdrawal from Gaza. "In the road map, there is a requirement to take steps toward the dismantlement of the terror organizations. Hamas is for us a terror organization. I would expect that the PA would do those things. We have made those requirements clear to them," Welch said. "Security is the beginning, the middle and the end, and security cannot be had either for the people in those areas or for those who live around them if there is a variety of armed organizations that are allowed to operate." (State Department)
See also Washington: It's the Palestinians' Move Now - Shmuel Rosner
After a stormy week of disengagement, Israel and the U.S. appear to see eye to eye on the next stage. Israel has proven its determination in carrying out the pullout from Gaza, and now the Palestinians must implement the required reforms. The message was clearly spelled out in telephone calls from Washington to Ramallah in the past days. No one in Washington is expecting real peace talks until after the elections next year in the PA and Israel. (Ha'aretz)
After a stormy week of disengagement, Israel and the U.S. appear to see eye to eye on the next stage. Israel has proven its determination in carrying out the pullout from Gaza, and now the Palestinians must implement the required reforms. The message was clearly spelled out in telephone calls from Washington to Ramallah in the past days. No one in Washington is expecting real peace talks until after the elections next year in the PA and Israel. (Ha'aretz)
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