Although until now the U.S. has largely gone along with Israel's approach that the PA must fight terrorism before Israel takes steps of its own, this has now been changing - but Israel, meanwhile, is still standing firm.
U.S. officials have been asking Israel to make some welcoming "gestures" towards Abu Mazen as he takes office. Defense Minister Sha'ul Mofaz, however, is against making any such concessions until after Abu Mazen proves that he is in control of the situation. This, in light of previous instances in which the terrorists have taken advantage of Israeli largesse to improve their capabilities and carry out attacks. GSS Chief Avi Dichter said as well that every "gesture" carries a price for Israel.
Mofaz, who will head Israel's negotiating team dealing with security issues, met with Prime Minister Sharon this afternoon, and the two agreed that gestures such as the release of hundreds of Arab prisoners cannot be carried out at this time. Neither will the IDF withdraw from parts of the northern Gaza Strip, as has also been suggested. However, Sharon did rule that a long-time ban on the entry of nine terrorist members of the PA's legislative council into Ramallah would be suspended, in order for them to take part in the ratification vote this week of Abu Mazen's government.
Arutz-7's Ariel Kahane spoke today with Makor Rishon columnist and political commentator Amnon Lord, a former Peace Now member. "Don't you get the feeling," Kahane asked, "that we've been through this before - all this talk of gestures towards the Palestinians and the like?"
Lord: "If you're talking of deja-vu, let me read you a quote, and see if you can guess who said it. 'It is not impossible that British diplomacy will win another victory in Washington, and then the U.S. will pressure Israel.' Who do you think said it?
Kahane: "Tony Blair?"
Lord: "It was actually a headline from Ha'aretz in January 1949! What we see is that this process of diplomacy, and negotiations, and concessions, and gestures, and wars, has been accompanying us for 55 years. We were only seven months old, yet still the British had to do diplomatic somersaults in order to pressure us. Israel at the tender age of seven months had just encircled the Egyptian army in the Sinai, showing the world that this entire land was ours. In the end, we did retreat from Sinai because of the pressure, but everyone understood what our borders were. Now again, I think we have to remind our own government ministers after all these years that this Land, all of it, is ours. Not for no reason did we re-enter the PA cities, and the international border is the Jordan River."
Kahane: "Do you think the ministers sufficiently reflect the fact that the Land is ours?"
Lord: "Not so much; I think that they instead reflect headlines from [left-wing newspapers], if you know what I mean... I think that the people who want to push the Road Map plan essentially want to resuscitate the Oslo Process from the beginning, and return us to the bloodshed of the past ten years. I think we just have to make it clear, as Rumsfeld said recently, that for as long as Arafat is still in charge - and he is - and for as long as he holds the purse strings and gives the military orders, there can be no progress, and no reason for us to make the same mistakes once again."
U.S. officials have been asking Israel to make some welcoming "gestures" towards Abu Mazen as he takes office. Defense Minister Sha'ul Mofaz, however, is against making any such concessions until after Abu Mazen proves that he is in control of the situation. This, in light of previous instances in which the terrorists have taken advantage of Israeli largesse to improve their capabilities and carry out attacks. GSS Chief Avi Dichter said as well that every "gesture" carries a price for Israel.
Mofaz, who will head Israel's negotiating team dealing with security issues, met with Prime Minister Sharon this afternoon, and the two agreed that gestures such as the release of hundreds of Arab prisoners cannot be carried out at this time. Neither will the IDF withdraw from parts of the northern Gaza Strip, as has also been suggested. However, Sharon did rule that a long-time ban on the entry of nine terrorist members of the PA's legislative council into Ramallah would be suspended, in order for them to take part in the ratification vote this week of Abu Mazen's government.
Arutz-7's Ariel Kahane spoke today with Makor Rishon columnist and political commentator Amnon Lord, a former Peace Now member. "Don't you get the feeling," Kahane asked, "that we've been through this before - all this talk of gestures towards the Palestinians and the like?"
Lord: "If you're talking of deja-vu, let me read you a quote, and see if you can guess who said it. 'It is not impossible that British diplomacy will win another victory in Washington, and then the U.S. will pressure Israel.' Who do you think said it?
Kahane: "Tony Blair?"
Lord: "It was actually a headline from Ha'aretz in January 1949! What we see is that this process of diplomacy, and negotiations, and concessions, and gestures, and wars, has been accompanying us for 55 years. We were only seven months old, yet still the British had to do diplomatic somersaults in order to pressure us. Israel at the tender age of seven months had just encircled the Egyptian army in the Sinai, showing the world that this entire land was ours. In the end, we did retreat from Sinai because of the pressure, but everyone understood what our borders were. Now again, I think we have to remind our own government ministers after all these years that this Land, all of it, is ours. Not for no reason did we re-enter the PA cities, and the international border is the Jordan River."
Kahane: "Do you think the ministers sufficiently reflect the fact that the Land is ours?"
Lord: "Not so much; I think that they instead reflect headlines from [left-wing newspapers], if you know what I mean... I think that the people who want to push the Road Map plan essentially want to resuscitate the Oslo Process from the beginning, and return us to the bloodshed of the past ten years. I think we just have to make it clear, as Rumsfeld said recently, that for as long as Arafat is still in charge - and he is - and for as long as he holds the purse strings and gives the military orders, there can be no progress, and no reason for us to make the same mistakes once again."