'Palestinian Authority' meeting with Iran in Venezuela?
DEBKA is reporting that the foreign ministers of the 'Palestinian Authority' and Iran met in Caracas on Monday in an attempt to reach an agreement on a 'national unity government' for the 'Palestinians.'Authorative sources in the Venezuelan capital have told DEBKAfile that Monday, April 27, Iran's foreign minister Mostafa Mohammed Najjar and intelligence chiefs secretly got together with visiting Palestinian Authority officials, led by Palestinian foreign minister Riyadh al-Maliki. The matchmakers were Hugo Chavez and the Qatar ruler Sheikh Hamad bin Khalifa, following on the former's visits to Tehran and Qatar in late March.Those of you who have been long-time readers know that I am reluctant to use DEBKA as a sole source, because they sometimes jump the gun on stories. However, I have been able to confirm that both Najjar and al-Maliki were in Caracas on Monday.
If true, this would signal a drastic policy turnabout by Palestinian Authority Chairman Mahmoud Abbas away from Cairo and over to the radical Tehran and Damascus. The Ramallah-Tehran opening, if confirmed, could help bury the hatchet between the warring Fatah and Hamas and pave the way for a Palestinian unity government governed by rejectionist ideology.
This would shut the door to future Palestinian negotiations with Israel's Netanyahu administration.
Najjar's visit to Caracas was formally presented as a move to strengthen "defense cooperation" between Iran and Venezuela.
"Iran pledges its full support to promote the Venezuelan military's defense capabilities in the framework of mutual defensive agreements," he said, Thursday, April 30, after calling on Chavez. The Iranian visitor also met Venezuelan vice president and acting defense minister Ramon Carrizalez to sign a memorandum of understanding (MOU) on military cooperation which encompassed "training and mutual exchange of military experiences".
The large Iranian and Palestinian Authority delegations met under cover of celebrations marking Venezuela's decision to sever its diplomatic ties with Israel and open a Palestinian embassy in Caracas instead.
Chavez is quoted as maintaining during his visits to Tehran and Doha that if US president Barack Obama is willing to talk to him, with Cuba and with Iran, there was no reason why Mahmoud Abbas should not engage Tehran directly. This would help overcome his Fatah's quarrel with Hamas, which Iran is actively supporting with arms, cash and military training.
Abbas is said to have welcomed the proposal when it was put to him by Sheikh Khalifa.
posted by Carl in Jerusalem @ 6:16 PM
3 Comments:
Debka is great, but I share your reservations.
The report may or may not be true. But if the PA has decided to unite with Hamas, Israel's entering into renewed talks with it will be effectively over.
So this development, if it transpires, may turn out to be a blessing in disguise for Israel.
Zion-NJ,
Yes, I have reservations about the report's believability. But on the other hand, do you really think it's coincidence that Najjar and al-Maliki happened to be in Caracas - halfway around the world from their homes - on the same day?
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