(New York Times) Steven Erlanger and Greg Myre - Prime Minister Ehud Olmert of Israel said Thursday that Israel would buy drugs and medical equipment urgently needed by Palestinian hospitals in Gaza out of funds Israel is withholding. In an interview in Jerusalem, Olmert vehemently denied that there was any Palestinian "humanitarian crisis," calling it "for the time being total propaganda." "We will pay if necessary out of our own pockets," he said, and get what is needed directly to the hospitals "as soon as possible," circumventing the Hamas government. "We wouldn't allow one baby to suffer one night." The Palestinians, Olmert insisted in his excellent English, "are the victims of their own extremist, fundamentalist, religious, inflexible, and unyielding leadership, and we will do everything in our power to help these innocent people." Washington and the EU want Olmert to try to negotiate first with Abbas, but Olmert does not want to get trapped into talks whose failure could start another round of violence. Olmert called the Palestinians natural partners of Israelis but the historical victims of "irresponsible, reckless, corrupt leadership, and a total lack of democratic traditions that always drew them away from the mainstream and into the sidelines, and into tragedies and pain."
2006-05-19 00:00:00Full ArticleBACK Visit the Daily Alert Archive