Olmert urges his ministers not to make comments regarding Abbas' speech
Israeli Prime Minister Ehud Olmert has instructed his ministers not to make any comments regarding the speech of Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas.
The instructions came on Sunday evening, while Israeli political analysts close to Olmert would say only that the speech of Abbas was "a positive development", yet consider it still "too early to make any comments, as Abbas has made many speeches before, with nothing reflected on the ground."
A close source to the Israeli minister of defense welcomed Abbas' decision, "with an important political decision, which might create new opportunities to denounce terror, it is possible to return to the negotiation table".
After comments from Israeli officials increased, Olmert issued orders to his ministers not to make comments publicly, in order to not embarrass President Abbas, as any statement of support from Israeli politicians may affect Abbas in the Palestinian street "and might weaken his position".
Hamas' response to Blair's visit: we won't recognize Israel nor shall we accept the Quartet's conditions
The Hamas movement has, on Monday, called on British Prime Minister Tony Blair to cease his intervention in the domestic affairs of other countries, "namely the Palestinian people".
The spokesperson of the Hamas movement Fawzi Barhoum declared. "We assure the British Prime Minister that our policy is already known to everybody; we won't accept the Quartet's conditions and we won't recognize Israel. This we say both in public and in closed-door meetings."
Barhoum also called on Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas to reconsider his call for early elections, so as to avoid a further split, in light of the agreement to cease inter-Palestinian clashes. He stated that the call for early elections "does not rely on any legal basis. That is supposed to be determined by the Palestinian Legislative Council (PLC), separate from the Executive Committee of the Palestinian Liberation Organization and Fatah's Central Committee. Most importantly, the Palestinian people shouldn't be dragged beyond a point of no-return."
Joint Palestinian-Israeli conference in Beijing
The Chinese foreign ministry has hosted a joint conference between Palestinian and Israeli delegations to discuss proposals to revitalize the peace process. Leading the Palestinian delegation was the former minister, Qaddoura Fares, while the Israeli delegation was headed by Yossi Beilin, the chairman of Meretz, the socialist-Zionist Israeli party.
The delegations met with the Chinese foreign minister and his assistant, in addition to the Chinese envoy to the peace process in the Middle East and other officials and academics.
The conveners issued a joint statement in which they expressed regret over the suspension of the peace process, assuring that the only solution for the conflict lies in dual political agreement. "Unilateralism can only escalate the violence and so the two-state solution is the best solution that can benefit both peoples".
Yousef Alhelou is a freelance Palestinian journalist based in Gaza. He can be contacted on ydamadan@hotmail.com
Israeli Prime Minister Ehud Olmert has instructed his ministers not to make any comments regarding the speech of Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas.
The instructions came on Sunday evening, while Israeli political analysts close to Olmert would say only that the speech of Abbas was "a positive development", yet consider it still "too early to make any comments, as Abbas has made many speeches before, with nothing reflected on the ground."
A close source to the Israeli minister of defense welcomed Abbas' decision, "with an important political decision, which might create new opportunities to denounce terror, it is possible to return to the negotiation table".
After comments from Israeli officials increased, Olmert issued orders to his ministers not to make comments publicly, in order to not embarrass President Abbas, as any statement of support from Israeli politicians may affect Abbas in the Palestinian street "and might weaken his position".
Hamas' response to Blair's visit: we won't recognize Israel nor shall we accept the Quartet's conditions
The Hamas movement has, on Monday, called on British Prime Minister Tony Blair to cease his intervention in the domestic affairs of other countries, "namely the Palestinian people".
The spokesperson of the Hamas movement Fawzi Barhoum declared. "We assure the British Prime Minister that our policy is already known to everybody; we won't accept the Quartet's conditions and we won't recognize Israel. This we say both in public and in closed-door meetings."
Barhoum also called on Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas to reconsider his call for early elections, so as to avoid a further split, in light of the agreement to cease inter-Palestinian clashes. He stated that the call for early elections "does not rely on any legal basis. That is supposed to be determined by the Palestinian Legislative Council (PLC), separate from the Executive Committee of the Palestinian Liberation Organization and Fatah's Central Committee. Most importantly, the Palestinian people shouldn't be dragged beyond a point of no-return."
Joint Palestinian-Israeli conference in Beijing
The Chinese foreign ministry has hosted a joint conference between Palestinian and Israeli delegations to discuss proposals to revitalize the peace process. Leading the Palestinian delegation was the former minister, Qaddoura Fares, while the Israeli delegation was headed by Yossi Beilin, the chairman of Meretz, the socialist-Zionist Israeli party.
The delegations met with the Chinese foreign minister and his assistant, in addition to the Chinese envoy to the peace process in the Middle East and other officials and academics.
The conveners issued a joint statement in which they expressed regret over the suspension of the peace process, assuring that the only solution for the conflict lies in dual political agreement. "Unilateralism can only escalate the violence and so the two-state solution is the best solution that can benefit both peoples".
Yousef Alhelou is a freelance Palestinian journalist based in Gaza. He can be contacted on ydamadan@hotmail.com