Weekend News Wrapup- 8/5/07

Israel and the Palestinian Territories
ISRAELI Prime Minister Ehud Olmert and PA President Mahmoud Abbas are scheduled to meet in the West Bank city of Jericho on Monday. The two are set to formulate a Declaration of Principles for a final settlement of the conflict. This, in turn, will be used as a basis for talks in a regional summit that U.S. Secretary of State Condaleeza Rice has planned for November.

There are several issues, beside final boundaries and a Palestinian "right of return," that complicate efforts for a final settlement. The first is that, after Hamas' bloody coup two months ago, Abbas no longer has any control over the Gaza Strip. The second is that Abbas' Fatah party is still seen by Palestinians as weak and corrupt. Its ability to enforce a peace agreement even in the West Bank is questionable. The third is Olmert's poor standing among Israelis. Olmert is less popular in Israel than President George W. Bush is in the United States, and Israelis may not trust him to ensure a fair and comprehensive peace.

OVER 300 members of terrorist groups associated with PA President Mahmoud Abbas have accepted an amnesty deal from Israel. Israel has promised to take these people aligned with Fatah, all located in the West Bank, off of its wanted list in exchange for them turning in their weapons and swearing off attacks on the Jewish State. The amnesty deal is part of a package of gestures that Israel is using to bolster Abbas' standing in the Palestinian territories.

Interestingly, members of Islamic Jihad, an Islamist terrorist group opposed to peace with Israel, have requested to be included in the amnesty. The Islamic Jihad leadership, however, has lambasted the amnesty and reaffirmed its commitment to destroy Israel.

Lebanon
RESIDENTS of the Christian city of Metn have gone to the polls to replace two assassinated Members of Parliament. Amin Gemayal, former president of Lebanon and father of one of the slain MP's, is contesting for his son's seat. His opponent is Kamil Khoury. Both candidates are Christian, though Gemayal is associated with the pro-Western government of Prime Minister Sinora while Khoury is aligned with the pro-Syria, Hezbollah-led opposition. The other seat is only being contested by pro-Western politician Mohammed al-Amin Itani.

MP's Pierre Gemayal and Walid Eido were murdered within the last year. Syria is suspected to be behind the slayings.

Iran
IRANIAN President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad has called on Israel to "go somewhere else." He stated that Israel should leave the region and a Palestinian state should crop up in its place. This comes after he has declared that Israel should be "wiped off the map" and hosted a Holocaust-denial conference.

His statement should also be viewed in the context of Iran's nuclear program. Iran has refused to suspend its nuclear activities, which the Islamic Republic has argued is purely for energy production. Western powers, however, are convinced it is also being used to develop a nuclear weapons program.

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Israelis Decry Gov't's Policy on Darfur Refugees

Israeli politicians from across the political spectrum have rightly united in their disgust at the government's policy toward Darfur refugees.

Last month, Israeli Prime Minister Ehud Olmert agreed to send any Darfur refugees that cross into the Jewish State from the Sinai Peninsula back to Egypt. Many of the Sudanese refugees attempt to flee Arab countries for Israel due to persecution and better economic opportunities.

Recently Israel Defense Force ("IDF") soldiers witnessed one such attempt. Several Darfur refugees were being chased by Egyptian soldiers while crossing into Israel. The Egyptians shot three of the refugees, immediately killing two of them. A fourth managed to get to the fence dividing Egypt and Israel, and began climbing it.

IDF soldiers who witnessed the shootings attempted to aid the refugee, getting a hold of his arm to help him over. But the Egyptians arrived and began pulling on the refugee's legs, and flung him back to the Egyptian side.

The IDF soldiers then watched helplessly as the Egyptians literally beat the refugee to death:

"What happened there yesterday was a lynch. These are not men, they're animals. They killed him without even using firearms...We just heard screams of pain and the sounds of beatings. Then the screams stopped."

This incident prompted Israel politicians of all political stripes to denounce the Israeli government's policy of sending refugees from Darfur back to Egypt. Opponents of the policy include Benjamin Nentanyahu of the center-right Likud; Amir Peretz of the center-left Labor; Effie Eitam of the right-wing National Religious Party; and Dov Henin of the communist Hadash Party.

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Weekend News Wrapup- 7/1/07

A Summary of Interesting Stories throughout the Middle East

Israel & the Palestinian Territories
ISRAEL has transferred $118 million to the new Palestinian government. These custom duties have been collected by Israel on behalf the Palestinian Authority ["PA"] under a 1990 agreement. Following the 2006 Palestinian election where Hamas won the majority of parliament seats & formed the government, Israel has refused to transfer the funds for fear that they may be used for terrorist attacks. But now that Hamas is no longer part of the official Palestinian government, Israel has agreed to release the funds in installments.

FORMER Israeli Prime Minister Ehud Barak--who is currently the defense minister, head of the Labor party, and prospective candidate for the prime ministership--has announced that he will pull Labor out of the government if current Prime Minister Ehud Olmert does not resign by September or October. The Winograd committee, set up to review Israel's performance against Hezbollah in the 2006, is expected to come out with its final report at that time. The preliminary report that was released earlier this year pinned much of the blame on Olmert for poorly planning, executing, and reviewing war strategies. If Barak pulls Labor out of the government, Olmert will either have to find new coalition partners to maintain a majority in the Knesset [parliament], or call new elections, in which case his Kadima party will likely lose many--if not most--of its Knesset seats.

HAMAS stated Saturday that it would attack international peace-keeping forces if they enter the Gaza Strip. Hamas, which defeated PA President Mahmoud Abbas' security & militia forces in a bloody coup three weeks ago, now has effective control over all of the Gaza Strip. The organization's recent statements were in reaction to Abbas' proposal that international forces enter Gaza to ensure a stable environment for elections and reunification with the West Bank.

Egypt
EGYPT has stated that it will resume efforts to negotiate a deal between Israel and Hamas that would lead to the release of Israeli Cpl. Gilad Shalit. Hamas and other terrorist groups kidnapped Shalit in a cross-border raid a year ago. Egypt, which has served as a mediator between Hamas and Israel, ended all efforts when Hamas took over Gaza three weeks ago. Hamas has demanded the release of hundred of Palestinians in Israeli jails, many of whom have been convicted of murdering civilians in terrorist attacks.

Lebanon
LEBANESE soldiers killed four Palestinians and wounded 30 during a protest demonstration, in response to Palestinian throwing stones at the soldiers. The Palestinians demanded to return to their homes in the Nahr al-Bared refugee camp, where many have lived since Israel's 1948-49 War of Independence. The Palestinians had fled the camp when Islamist extremists used the area as a base to carry out terrorist bombings, which led to the Lebanese army laying siege to the camp a month and a half ago. Since there are still terrorists believed to be holed up in Nahr al-Bared, the Lebanese army has refused to let civilians back in.

Iran
VENEZUELAN President Hugo Chavez reiterated his support for Iran's nuclear program as he met with Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad on Sunday. Iran is widely believed to be working on a nuclear weapons' program, though officials have insisted that the technology is only for peaceful civilian purposes. Fear of what Iran might do with a nuclear weapon was intensified last year when Ahmadinejad promised to wipe Israel off the map. Chavez appeared in Tehran, described Ahmadinejad as his "ideological brother" and promised to help Iran in its fight against international "imperialism."

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On Bolstering Abbas

In a historic meeting between the leaders of Israel, the Palestinian Authority, Jordan, and Egypt, Israeli Prime Minister Ehud Olmert has promised to transfer $35o million to Palestinian Authority President Mahmoud Abbas. He also promised to release 250 Palestinian prisoners as a show of good faith. This announcement comes shortly after the United States and the European Union decided to lift the economic embargo against the Palestinian Authority, a result of Abbas sacking the Hamas government.

King Abdullah of Jordan and Egyptian President Hosni Mubarak voiced their support for Abbas. The Quartet of Middle East Mediators (the U.S., U.N., E.U., and Russia) met today in Jerusalem, suggesting that they believe Israel can work with Abbas as a partner for peace. The Quartet has not quashed rumors that outgoing British Prime Minister Tony Blair will be its new envoy, further suggesting the group sees new momemtum for a peace process.

So is all of this faith that the international community (including Israel) has in Abbas misplaced? In previous posts (From the Horse's Mouth, They're Wrong) I have written how Abbas and his Fatah party are just as bad, if not worse, than Hamas because Abbas says all the right things but has no power or will to implement hard decisions. He gives hope to the Israelis, Palestinians, and international community yet always disappoints, leading to dispair and worse violence.

But shouldn't Israel and the international community at least try to work towards a peace settlement with Abbas, the "voice of moderation?" My mind and my gut says absolutely not, but the remnants of my bleeding heart liberalism past says perhaps. However, there must be strict monitering of any money, weapons, or prisoners released to Abbas & Fatah. Furthermore, Abbas & Fatah must meet certain benchmarks in order to show that they are truly partners. These include:

• Disbanding and disarming all non-state militias, including Fatah-related militias such as the al-Aqsa Martyrs Brigade and Tanzim.
• Creating and enforcing a zero tolerance policy for crime and corruption.
• Ending all media incitement against Israel.

Once Abbas takes these steps, he will have proven that he is willing to make and implement difficult decisions. Only then can Israel and the international community take any further actions to bolster Abbas and work toward peace and a Palestinian state. If Abbas fails to take these steps, which he likely will, then Israel and all those who desire for peace must look for a different path.

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