[Ottawa Citizen] David Warren - Nothing essential has changed. The Palestinians, and the Arab powers who are not really behind them, still do not unambiguously recognize Israel's right to exist. They have got no closer to the position Anwar Sadat of Egypt took, very publicly, when he flew to Jerusalem and set the stage for the only Israel-Arab peace conference that ever made any difference. This is the stage of saying publicly, in Arabic to their own people, not only in English to foreign media, that, "Israel is there, she is Jewish, she will stay there, and it is in our common interest to make peace with her and get on with our lives." Mahmoud Abbas does not represent more than the old Fatah rump within the West Bank. Hamas has been in the ascendant, both electorally and by force of arms. Who can expect Israel to make peace with a Palestinian representative who is the figurehead of a dying regime?
2007-11-30 01:00:00Full ArticleBACK Visit the Daily Alert Archive