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World Jewish News
Barak: Fatah's rhetoric is unacceptable
09.08.2009
Defense Minister Ehud Barak on Sunday was critical of the positions expressed by Fatah in recent days, saying at the start of the weekly cabinet meeting that "The rhetoric coming from Fatah and the positions being expressed are grave and unacceptable to us."
"Still," he said, "it must be understood that there is no solution in the Middle East other than a comprehensive [peace] deal, which includes us and the Palestinians."
Fatah's sixth General Assembly has issued several hard-line resolutions in recent days, saying it would not renew peace negotiations with Israel until all Palestinian prisoners are released from Israeli jails, all settlement-building is frozen and the Gaza blockade is lifted. It also vowed to struggle against Israel "until Jerusalem returns to the Palestinians void of settlers and settlements" and pinned the blame for the death of former chairman Yasser Arafat on Israel.
Barak called on Palestinian Authority President Mahmoud Abbas to enter serious negotiations with Israel and called on the US and President Barack Obama to lead the way for peace in the region.
Also speaking at the start of the meeting, Prime Minister Binyamin Netanyahu reiterated that the disengagement from the Gaza Strip had not brought peace or security and had turned Gaza into a Hamas base controlled by Iran.
Marking four years since the pullout, Netanyahu vowed that Israel "won't repeat that mistake. We won't create new evacuees."
He added that "recognition of Israel and real demilitarization" of a future Palestinian state were conditions to any future peace deal.
As to the treatment of the Gaza evacuees, Netanyahu said his government was committed to aiding those "whose lives had been ruined" and rehabilitating them "in every sense of the word - now and not later."
"I think that we are committed to two things," the prime minister said. "First, the rehabilitation of our brothers… Second, we will not repeat this mistake. We want multi-lateral agreements based on two basic components: One, the genuine recognition of the State of Israel and two - of course - security arrangements, the honoring and enforcement of which will be assured."
By JPOST.COM STAFF. Khaled Abu Toameh contributed to this report.
Источник: JPost.com
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