IRAQ STUDY GROUP ADVISERS SURPRISED, UPSET BY ISRAEL-IRAQ LINKAGE

Iraq Study Group Advisers Surprised, Upset by Israel-Iraq Linkage - Nathan Guttman (Forward)
Several advisers to the bipartisan Iraq Study Group were surprised and upset by the decision of panel leaders to argue that American success in Iraq depends in part on progress in resolving the Israeli-Palestinian conflict.

In interviews, several of the experts who advised the panel said they were shocked that the Israeli-Palestinian issue was included in the final report, since they had been told not to address the matter in their recommendations.

One staff member argued that making such a linkage was "stupid" and pointed to Edward Djerejian, a former ambassador to Syria and Israel with close ties to James Baker, as the person who inserted the language regarding Israel.

Another staff member told of a joke that was made when the issue came up: "Does anyone think that if we solve the [Israeli-Palestinian] conflict, the insurgent in Fallujah will say 'Great, now I can put back my AK-47 and go home.'"

Israeli Envoy Rejects Mideast "Linkage" - David R. Sands
Foreign-policy crises in Iraq and Iran will not be eased by pressuring Israel to cut a peace deal with the Palestinians, Israeli Ambassador Sallai Meridor said in an interview Thursday.

"Frankly, we don't see any connection between our dispute with the Palestinians and the level of violence on Haifa Street in Baghdad," said Meridor. "And there is no linkage in my mind between the Israeli-Palestinian question and what Ahmadinejad is planning for the region and the world by pursuing a nuclear weapon." "We think that, yes, there is a convergence of interests of many Arab countries in the region and Israel today in recognition of the threat to the entire region from Iran," he said. "Whether that can be translated into action and a new alliance, we will have to see."

"Nobody is more interested in a real two-state compromise than Israel, as we have demonstrated time and time again," Meridor said. "The real problem is that, right now, we don't have a real interlocutor on the Palestinian side willing and capable of delivering an agreement that meets basic international principles." Meridor said Israel was taking a "calculated risk" in allowing the buildup of security forces of Mahmoud Abbas, locked in a bloody power struggle with the elected Hamas government. (Washington Times)