Israel Matzav

Sauce for the goose is sauce for the gander?

This is rich.

For years, Israel has been demanding that the Arab world accept its 'right to exist' (whatever that means) as a pre-condition for talking 'peace' and the Arabs have refused claiming that the one 'concession' they can make to Israel - and then only as part of a final 'settlement' - is to recognize its 'right to exist.'

In response to Egyptian President Hosni Mubarak's push for 'negotiations, new 'moderate' 'Palestinian' Prime Minister Salam Fayyad is setting conditions for negotiations with Hamas over reuniting the Gazans and the 'West Bankers.' Guess what condition number one is:

The new Palestinian prime minister insisted on Tuesday that the Hamas Islamists who have seized control in Gaza must accept his government's authority before it will consider calls for negotiations.

Responding to urging from Egypt's president for the rival Palestinian factions to talk to each other, Salam Fayyad told Reuters in the West Bank city of Ramallah: "These are key principles that everyone has to accept for there to be any meaningful steps taken.

"First, Hamas has to relinquish any and all claims to legitimacy as a regime in Gaza. Second, there has to be acceptance of the constitutional measures taken by the president." [i.e. that the government of 'moderate' former 'Prime Minister' of 'Palestine' Ismail Haniyeh was fired. CiJ]

I'll bet Haniyeh comes back and says he will only negotiate 'without preconditions.'

Hmmm....

posted by Carl in Jerusalem @ 9:18 PM