Israel Matzav

A partner for whom?

You will recall that I reported at the end of last week that Prime Minister Netanyahu has blown away an offer from 'moderate' 'Palestinian' President Mahmoud Abbas Abu Mazen to resume talks, because it was subject to the usual litany of conditions.

I'm sure you'll all be shocked to hear that with an election pending here in Israel, the architect of the Oslo debacle, the man most responsible for the death of more than 2,000 Israelis in terror attacks since 1993, thinks that Abu Bluff's offer is a great offer, and that Abu Bluff - whose term in office expired nearly four years ago - is our 'peace partner.'

“Abu Mazen [Abbas] has condemned terror and has pledged that under his leadership there will not be a third intifada. He understands very well that the solution to the Palestinian refugee problem cannot be within Israeli territory, in order not to change the demographic character of Israel.

“But he has put out a hand to Israel to renew the peace process,” Peres said.

He continued that Abbas’s plea on TV was a matter of great significance, and that the desire for peace and a two-state solution also had a broad consensus behind it in Israel.

But the Prime Minister’s Office said that the only meaningful gesture Abbas could make would be to sit down and negotiate without preconditions.

It is long past time to put Peres out to pasture. Unlike most Israelis who supported the Oslo debacle, he is constitutionally incapable of admitting that he ever made a mistake. 

Labels: 1949 armistice lines, Abu Mazen, Binyamin Netanyahu, Middle East peace process, negotiations without preconditions, Oslo accords, Shimon Peres, two-state solution

posted by Carl in Jerusalem @ 11:14 AM