Israeli and Palestinian Authority (PA) negotiators have been meeting all week in last-ditch attempts to agree on a joint statement to be presented at the Annapolis summit next week – without success.
Representatives for the two sides met again Thursday night to try and hammer out a joint statement which will satisfy U.S. Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice while allowing the two sides to agree to disagree.
Sources said Friday morning that PA Chairman and Fatah leader Mahmoud Abbas and Israeli Prime Minister Ehud Olmert will eventually have to decide whether to bridge the gaps, or disappoint the U.S.
Officials in Jerusalem, however, said the PA is not really invested in reaching an agreement on the joint statement because PA residents have rejected the idea of compromise with Israel, giving Hamas another edge in toppling the Fatah-led government.
The differences to be worked out include a PA demand that Israel agree on a timetable for expulsion of Jews from Judea and Samaria, and establish a PA state.
Prime Minister Olmert has previously stated that he would not concede and commit Israel to such a timetable while terrorism is still out of control.
Hamas meanwhile is taking advantage of the dithering to sabotage the conference altogether.
The terrorist organization, which ousted Abbas's Fatah force in its takeover of Gaza in June, is whipping up anger in the PA "street" by claiming Israel's right-wing wants to invade the Temple Mount in Jerusalem, according to the Israeli Intelligence and Terrorism Information Center. The tactic, said the Center, is aimed at deflecting attention from its recent massacre of Fatah supporters at a Gaza rally held to commemorate the anniversary of the death of PLO Chairman Yasser Arafat.
Recent Hamas speeches have warned of the "shame and disgrace" of the Annapolis summit, calling on Arabs and Muslims to censure the "Zionist enemy" for alleged attacks on the Al-Aqsa mosque at the Temple Mount.