Abu Mazen says it again, is anyone listening?
Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas said there is "no way" he will recognize Israel as a Jewish state and accept a Palestinian capital in just a portion of Israeli-annexed east Jerusalem, rebuffing what Palestinians fear will be key elements of a U.S. peace proposal.
Abbas' comments signaled that the gaps between him and Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu remain wide after seven months of mediation efforts by U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry.
Abbas, whose remarks were published on Friday by the Palestinian news agency WAFA, said he withstood international pressure in the past, when he sought U.N. recognition of a state of Palestine over Washington's objections.
Speaking to youth activists of his Fatah party, he suggested he would stand firm again, particularly over the demand that the Palestinians recognize Israel as a Jewish state.
"They are pressing and saying, 'no peace without the Jewish state'," he said, though not spelling out who is applying the pressure. "There is no way. We will not accept."US Secretary of State John FN Kerry has until April 29 to reach an increasingly unlikely agreement.
What could go wrong?
Labels: Abu Mazen, Binyamin Netanyahu, Israel is a Jewish state, John Kerry, Middle East peace process
posted by Carl in Jerusalem @ 9:36 PM
1 Comments:
Didn't the State Department just state that they don't have to recognize Israel as the Jewish Nation?
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