It continues: Clinton on her way to pressure Netanyahu on ground op
White House deputy national security adviser Ben Rhodes told reporters that the message of Clinton's trip will be that it is in nobody's interest for there to be an escalation of military conflict in Gaza. He added that Hamas must end rocket attacks into Israel and that Egypt can be a partner in helping to resolve the conflict in Gaza.
Clinton's visit comes amid an flurry of diplomatic visits to the region aimed at securing a cease-fire to end to the hostilities in Gaza.
UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon on Tuesday called for an immediate ceasefire and said an Israeli ground operation in the Palestinian enclave would be a "dangerous escalation" that must be avoided.
"Immediate steps are needed by all to avoid a further escalation, including a ground operation which will only result in further tragedy," he said, before adding that Israel has "legitimate security concerns."
Ban spoke at a news conference in Cairo after talks with Arab League chief Nabil Elaraby. Later on Tuesday, the UN secretary-general will travel to Israel for talks with Netanyahu.
In a meeting with President Shimon Peres in the President's Residence on Tuesday, German Foreign Minister Guido Westerwelle on Tuesday confirmed his frequently voiced stance that Israel has the right to defend herself against rocket attacks from Gaza.
"The German People and the German Government stand by Israel's right to protect and defend itself against missile attacks from Gaza; and Hamas has the responsibility to stop the missile attacks against Israel," Westerwelle said.
"We're all interested in a cessation of hostilities," he said, adding that everyone was working towards a de-escalation of the situation and doing their utmost towards a achieving a ceasefire, but the cessation of rocket-fire against Israel was incumbent upon Hamas.
On Monday night, Westerwelle met with Netanyahu and Foreign Minister Avigdor Liberman, before heading to Ramallah to meet with Palestinian Authority President Mahmoud Abbas.Read the whole thing.
The bottom line is that although no one expects us to roll over and play dead (thank God for that), no one is willing to see us actually resolve the problem either.
Do Clinton and Obama think they have a 'responsibility to protect' Hamas? What could go wrong?
Labels: Ban Ki-Moon, Binyamin Netanyahu, Gaza, Guido Westerwelle, Hamas, Hillary Clinton, Huma Abedin, Operation Pillar of Defense, responsibility to protect
posted by Carl in Jerusalem @ 12:17 PM
2 Comments:
There is no point haggling with a lame duck diplomat. Especially one who states this is nothing more than two equally legitimate points of view, or worse, that Hamas is the favored party in all of this.
Responsibility to Protect Hamas, al Aqsa Martyrs Brigade, al Qaeda, al Shabaab, Muslim Bros... and, in particular, watch out for Turkey's role in calling in the NATO/US fighter jets to bomb Israel on their behalf.
Post a Comment
<< Home