|
1) Impact of the Gaza Crisis: Options for Moving
Forward
2) Road
Map Revived:
First Meeting of Gen. Fraser Highlights Israeli & Palestinian Shortcomings
3)
Negotiations Now and Then: Current State-of-Play and Lessons Learned
4)
Humanitarian Update: Aid Groups Report on Gaza
5)
Conflict in Jerusalem: Terror Attack in Fragile City, Settlement Expansion
6)
Update on Christians: Leaving the Mideast, Jerusalem Churches on Violence
& Attacks on Gaza's Christians
Neither Israel, the Palestinian Authority or the United States can afford
a failed Annapolis process and yet actions on the ground by both
sides are continuing to erode public hope for peace.
The spiraling violence in Israel and the Palestinian territories in recent
weeks, spreading from southern Israel and Gaza to Jerusalem and the West
Bank, has wreaked havoc in the lives of Israelis and Palestinians and
threatened to derail peace efforts. The very real possibility of
continued violence and counter-violence has prompted unofficial talks that
as of yet have yielded only a fragile calm. A durable cease-fire
arrangement between Israel and Gaza, mediated by Egypt and President Abbas,
appears more and more necessary and likely.
Meanwhile, Road Map obligations remain unfulfilled. News of Israeli
settlement expansion plans undermines the moderate Palestinian leadership
and its ability to take effective action on its own unfulfilled
obligations to confront terrorists. The failure by both Israel and the
Palestinians to meet their obligations finally is receiving U.S.
attention, but sustained engagement is needed to ensure that the
necessary steps are taken and that negotiations can continue without
provocation.
Four months after the Annapolis conference, and eight months to go
before the peace agreement promised by year end—there is time to regain
momentum but it will require constant high-level attention and tangible
improvements in the lives of people on the ground.
1.
Impact of the Gaza Crisis: Options
for Moving Forward
"Annapolis's Fading Hope", David Ignatius, The Washington
Post, March 9, 2008
"The Annapolis peace conference last November was a good moment for
Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice. She seemed to be getting serious,
finally, about using American diplomacy to push for an Israeli-Palestinian
agreement whose basic parameters are understood by everyone -- but which
requires U.S. follow-through to make it happen. Since then, that crucial
ingredient -- American follow- through -- has been sadly lacking. As a
result, the Annapolis process has languished to the point that over the
past two weeks, some Israelis and Palestinians warned it was near
collapse...What's needed is some sort of cease-fire between Hamas and
Israel...Rice keeps insisting that she is serious about achieving an
Israeli-Palestinian breakthrough before President Bush leaves office. But
progress requires disciplined follow-through. Without it, you can add
Annapolis to the dustbin."
For full article click
here.
"What Lies Ahead for Gaza?" American Task Force on Palestine,
March 6, 2008
"The confrontations last weekend between Hamas and Israel in Gaza have
brought two facts into sharp focus. First, Hamas and Israel have locked
themselves into a logic of progressively increasing violence that - unless
broken - will inevitably lead to a wide scale land operation against Gaza.
Second, unless accompanied by a policy of strengthening the Palestinian
Authority (PA) under President Abbas and Prime Minister Fayyad by enabling
them to deliver concrete results, the strategy of pressuring Hamas will
not work and would likely be counterproductive. Violence in Gaza,
accompanied by a worsening or even static situation the West Bank, will
make it impossible to sustain permanent status negotiations..."
For full article click
here.
"Forward From Gaza: How The U.S. Can Lead," Interview With
Daniel C. Kurtzer by S. Daniel Abraham, Middle East Progress ,
March 5, 2008
"...For both long- and short-term reasons, it is not too late for the
United States to commit itself more actively to try to make this Annapolis
process work. For long-term reasons, it's because the president says he
wants some kind of an agreement by the end of his administration. If
that's serious then he's got to show it. And that means much more U.S.
activity than we have seen until now. But even in the short term, while
people think there's no alternative way to deal with Gaza other than
through violence, the reality is that the more the moderate Palestinian
leadership gets empowered through negotiations and gets empowered through
a process of peace-making with Israel, that's the way to undermine Hamas
in the Gaza Strip. This is not a zero-sum game where you either have to
accept Hamas or destroy them. You can also empower Palestinian moderates
so that they begin to prevail again as the deciding force within
Palestinian society. And the way they prevail is twofold: number one,
through the peace process and number two, through active internal reforms,
which they have not yet engaged in, but which they should be encouraged to
do immediately..."
For full interview click
here.
"The Road Out of Gaza," Nathan Brown, Carnegie Endowment
Policy Outlook No. 39, February 2008
"The Middle East peace process will fail unless Palestinian political
institutions are rebuilt, argues a new paper from the Carnegie Endowment.
The rebuilding of viable political structures to represent and serve the
Palestinians is the only way to move beyond the current political
stalemate and the failed effort to build a Palestinian state. In The Road
Out of Gaza, Palestinian expert Nathan J. Brown discusses the economic and
political disarray not only in Gaza and the West Bank but within Hamas and
Fatah as well, and argues that the international efforts to rebuild
Palestine are in reality counterproductive. Brown suggests a long-term
international strategy based on restoring Palestinian institutions,
encouraging a Fatah-Hamas agreement, and emphasizing regional diplomacy."
For full article click
here.
Israelis and Palestinians Respond: "Poll # 164: The Majority of the
Palestinians Support at Present a Palestinian Israeli Calm,"
Palestinian Center for Public Opinion, March 12, 2008
"The survey results have shown that (73.0 %) of the Palestinian people
support at present a Palestinian-Israeli calm period. The most important
result, Dr. Nabil Kukali said, was that (49.4 %) oppose the suicide
bombings inside Israel and (67.4 %) support the call of the released Hamas'
activists on their leadership in Gaza to retreat from the military
decision in Gaza Strip..."
To view the full result as PDF click
here.
"Poll: Most Israelis back direct talks with Hamas on Shalit,"
Yossi Verter, Haaretz, February 27, 2008
"Sixty-four percent of Israelis say the government must hold direct
talks with the Hamas government in Gaza toward a cease-fire and the
release of captive soldier Gilad Shalit. Less than one-third (28 percent)
still opposes such talks. The figures were obtained in a Haaretz-Dialog
poll conducted Tuesday under the supervision of Professor Camil Fuchs of
Tel Aviv University. According to the findings, Israelis are fed up with
seven years of Qassam rockets falling on Sderot and the communities near
Gaza, as well as the fact that Shalit has been held captive for more than
a year and a half. An increasing number of public figures, including
senior officers in the Israel Defense Forces' reserves, have expressed
similar positions on talks with Hamas. It now appears that this opinion is
gaining traction in the wider public, which until recently vehemently
rejected such negotiations..."
To view full article click
here.
2.
Road Map Revived: First Meeting of Gen. Fraser Highlights Israeli &
Palestinian Shortcomings
"US Mideast Envoy Criticizes 'Road Map' Violations," Robert
Berger, Voice of America, March 14, 2008
"Retired American general William Fraser held his first meeting with
Israeli and Palestinian officials at a hotel in Jerusalem. Fraser was
appointed by President Bush to oversee compliance with the
internationally- backed 'Road Map' peace plan, which is the basis of
negotiations on Palestinian statehood. Prime Minister Salam Fayyad
represented the Palestinians at the talks, but Israel sent a lower-level
official from the Defense Ministry, Amos Gilad. Gilad told Israel Radio
that the meeting was aimed at dialogue and advancing the peace process.
He denied media reports that Defense Minister Ehud Barak did not attend
because of tension with the Americans over the Road Map. The U.S. issued
a statement saying the meeting focused on areas where the parties were
not keeping their commitments. It did not elaborate, but the U.S. has
described Israeli settlement construction in East Jerusalem and the West
Bank as a violation of the Road Map that is harming peace efforts. The
United States has also pressed the Palestinians to keep their Road Map
commitments and do more to rein in militant groups..."
For full article click
here.
3.
Negotiations Now and Then: Current State-of-Play and Lessons Learned
Despite the recent violence, Israeli PM Olmert and Palestinian Pres.
Abbas have each reaffirmed their commitment to negotiations, most of
which are taking place behind closed doors. Press reports indicate that
negotiators will meet this week. Below is a guide to the current state
of play and a summary of a new book from the U.S. Institute of Peace
that gleans lessons from past negotiations.
"Israeli, Palestinian negotiators to meet this week,"
Reuters, March 16, 2008
"Chief Israeli and Palestinian peace negotiators plan to meet this
week, restarting talks that were suspended after a deadly Israeli
offensive in the Gaza Strip, Israeli and Western officials said on
Sunday. The negotiations, led by Israeli Foreign Minister Tzipi Livni
and former Palestinian prime minister Ahmed Qurie, have shown little
sign of progress since they were launched at a peace conference in
Annapolis, Maryland in November. An Israeli official speaking on
condition of anonymity and a visiting Western envoy, who met with Qurie,
said the chief negotiators have agreed to meet this week..."
For full article click
here.
"A Guide for the Perplexed -- Negotiations After Annapolis," Settlement
Report, Vol. 18 No. 1, Jeff Aronson, Foundation for Middle East Peace, February 2008
"Negotiations have resumed to resolve the 'core issues' of the
conflict between Israel and the Palestinians--borders and settlements,
Palestinian refugees, and the status and territorial division of
Jerusalem. Palestinian and Israeli negotiating delegations have been
created, a framework for addressing both final status issues and those
related to obligations set out in the road map has been established, and
the international community has committed to unprecedented levels of
financial support for Palestinian Authority (PA) chairman Mahmoud Abbas
and Prime Minister Salaam Fayyad..."
For full report click
here.
"Steep Decline in Arab-Israeli Peace Process Can Be Reversed:
Long-term American Commitment Is Key, Says New Book ," U.S.
Institute of Peace Press Release, February, 2008
"President Bush's recent attempts to reinvigorate the Middle East
peace process will fail unless his administration pays more attention to
lessons learned in past negotiations, say Daniel C. Kurtzer, former U.S.
ambassador to Egypt and Israel, and Scott B. Lasensky, Middle East
expert at the United States Institute of Peace (USIP). The authors of
the new book Negotiating Arab-Israeli Peace: American Leadership in the
Middle East conclude that there can be no endgame, two-state solution to
the Arab-Israeli conflict without the United States playing an active
role in spurring the negotiations. 'The absence of American leadership
during this administration, combined with a blatant disregard for what
worked in the past, has harmed American national interests and set back
the quest for peace'...With the clock running out on the Bush
administration and its efforts to forge a Middle East peace, Kurtzer and
Lasensky offer ten core lessons as well as policy recommendations to
guide the current and, more likely, future administrations in future
negotiations...'"
For full press release click
here.
4.
Humanitarian Update: Aid Groups Report on Gaza
"Gaza: Humanitarian situation worst since 1967," Amnesty
International; Catholic Agency for Overseas Development (AI); CARE (CAFOD);
Christian Aid; Médecins du Monde; Oxfam; Save the Children Alliance;
Trócaire, March 6, 2008
"The humanitarian situation in Gaza is worse now than it's been at
any time since the beginning of the Israeli occupation in 1967,
according to a new report published today (6 March) by a coalition of
leading humanitarian and human rights organisations. The weekend's
upsurge in violence and human misery underlines the urgency of this
report. In their new joint report, the coalition - comprising Amnesty
International, CARE International UK, CAFOD, Christian Aid, Médecins du
Monde UK, Oxfam, Save The Children UK and Trócaire - warns that Israel's
blockade of Gaza is a collective punishment of the entire Gazan civilian
population of 1.5 million...Geoffrey Dennis, Chief Executive of CARE
International UK said: 'The recent escalation in violence, both from
rocket attacks and military strikes, will make life even more unbearable
in Gaza. Unemployment has soared and 80% of people in Gaza are now
dependent on food aid compared to 63% in 2006. Water and sewage
infrastructure is on the point of total collapse. Unless the blockade
ends now, it will be impossible to pull Gaza back from the brink of this
disaster and any hopes for peace in the region will be dashed...'"
For full press release click
here.
5.
Conflict in Jerusalem:
Terror Attack in Fragile City, Settlement Expansion
The terrible shooting of yeshiva students in Jerusalem on March 7th
by a Palestinian extremist, condemned by President Abbas, but celebrated
by Hamas, was a reminder of the fragility of the holy city that is home
to Israelis and Palestinians, Jews, Christians and Muslims.
"Jerusalem Struggles To Maintain Its Balance," The
Associated Press, March 10, 2008
"When an Arab from East Jerusalem killed eight people at a Jewish
seminary, it endangered the fragile fabric of life in a city where
people divided by distrust have nonetheless managed to get along. The
shooting was a shock to many Jerusalemites, not only because it followed
a long period of relative quiet, but also because even in the peak years
of Palestinian suicide bombings, the Arabs of East Jerusalem were
largely bystanders. In the aftermath, the city's Jews fear for their
safety, while Arabs are wary of a backlash..."
For full article click
here.
Recent announcements by Israel of plans to expand settlements in
East Jerusalem and in the West Bank environs of Jerusalem undermine
peace negotiations, in which both settlements and Jerusalem are key
topics. The United States has criticized the housing plans. (During the
President's January trip, it was
clarified
that the United States disapproves of building in both East
Jerusalem and the West Bank).
President Bush on Settlements: Press Conference with Prime
Minister Tusk of Poland, March 10, 2008
QUESTION: Yes, sir. Back on the Middle East, what do you think of
Israel's plan to build 750 new homes in a settlement near Jerusalem? And
what, if any, threat or complication, do you see to your
administration's peace efforts?
PRESIDENT BUSH: We expect both parties to -- involved in the Middle
Eastern peace process to adhere to their obligations in the road map.
And those obligations are clear. And to this end, the Secretary of State
is dispatching the general that we named to be the coordinator of road
map activities to the Middle East, for him to conduct meetings with the
relevant parties.
For full press release click
here.
"Olmert approves construction of 750 new homes in Givat Ze'ev,"
Barak Ravid, Haaretz, March 11, 2008
"Prime Minister Ehud Olmert has approved the renewed construction of
an estimated 750 new homes in the West Bank settlement of Givat Ze'ev
near Jerusalem, the Housing Ministry said yesterday. The project
approved for the settlement's Agan Ayelot neighborhood drew criticism
from the Palestinian Authority over Israel's commitment to the peace
process..."
For full article click
here.
"Peace Now: Plans to link J'lem with Adam," Tovah Lazaroff,
The Jerusalem Post, March 11, 2008 Mar 11, 2008
"Initial plans exist to link the West Bank settlement of Adam with an
expansion project of 400 units in east Jerusalem's Neveh Ya'akov
neighborhood, according to Peace Now. The 400-unit east Jerusalem
project drew headlines on Monday - even though it still needed the
approval of a regional planning committee - because members of the
international community and the Palestinians objected to Israeli
construction in the Jewish sections of east Jerusalem..."
For full article click
here.
See Also: "Jerusalem Settlements take Center Stage,"
Settlements in Focus - Vol. 4, Issue 1, Americans for Peace Now,
February 2008
For full report click
here.
6.
Update on Christians: Leaving the Mideast, Jerusalem Churches on
Violence & Attacks on Gaza's Christians
"Christians in Flight," By the editors, America, March 24, 2008
"...In general, crimes against Christians have been perpetrated by
jihadists and xenophobic criminals unleashed by war's chaos. In the long
term, the surest route to security for the region's Christians lies in a
peace that includes not only a political settlement but also the
ascendancy of moderate Muslims and the taming of radicals. This is true
not only of Iraq but also of other war-torn countries in the region,
like Lebanon and the Palestinian Territories. In addition, a wiser, less
bullying foreign and military policy on the part of the United States is
in order. The invasion of Iraq, the U.S. backing for Israel's war on
Hezbollah and the U.S. failure to be an honest broker in the Middle East
peace process have accelerated the flow of Christian emigration from the
region. In Iraq, where domination by force had failed atrociously, the
surge has had modest success because it combines a restrained show of
force with on-the-ground diplomacy and civil-political initiatives..."
For full article click
here or go to the
America website.
"Patriarchs and Heads of the Churches in Jerusalem send their
condolences to Israeli and Palestinian Leaders," (On Their behalf:
Patriarch Theofilos III, Patriarch Michel Sabbah, Patriarch Torkom
Manooghian, Fr Pier Battista Pizziballa, of, Custos of the Holy Land,
March 8, 2008
To H.E. Prime Minister Ehud Olmert and the Grand Rabbinate: We write
to express our condolences for the killing of the Yeshiva students, not
least to the parents and families of the victims. It is a sad and tragic
event coming from the cycle of violence in which the whole Land is
victim...We pray that God will inspire all of us to submit to His ways
in order to reach a comprehensive and just peace with a total security
for you and for all.
To Mr President Mahmoud Abbs Abu Mazen: We the Patriarchs and Heads
of the Christian Churches in Jerusalem address this letter to you to
express our condolences for all the victims who have fallen and are
still falling in this wave of violence in Gaza...May God give you
strength and wisdom to keep you well in order to lead the Palestinian
people to peace and security.
For letters click
here.
"Christians say conditions in Gaza worsen for them, moderate
Muslims,"Judith Sudilovsky, Catholic News Service, Feb 19,
2008
"Living conditions for Christians and moderate Muslims are becoming
increasingly difficult in the Gaza Strip, Christians told Catholic News
Service...Msgr. Manuel Musallam, pastor of Holy Family Parish remarked,
"We are moving toward the unknown. The Christians are worried about the
general tone in the country." Msgr. Musallam said the conditions in Gaza
and relations with government ministries have changed drastically
following the militant Islamic group Hamas' takeover of the territory
last June. "The months before Hamas were one thing," he said. "We are
now entering a new life, new behavior in Gaza. We have never passed
(this experience) before. It is a more conservative thing." He said
people could not speak openly. Still, he said, Palestinians have met
with police and an adviser to the prime minister and will establish a
joint Christian-Muslim dialogue group so the Muslim population can get
to know the Christian community better."
For full article click
here.
"Bishop Younan Denounces Gaza YMCA Bombing," Evangelical
Lutheran Church in Jordan and the Holy Land News, Feb. 17, 2008
"Bishop Munib Younan has denounced the ugly crime that took place
recently in Gaza, the bombing of the library of the YMCA. He said that
this atrocity only provokes division and aims to harm the brotherly and
sisterly relations between the Palestinian Muslims and Christians. He
said such an act is not just a crime against the YMCA but against the
whole Palestinian people. The Bishop said 'We in the church strongly
condemn this cowardly atrocity that aimed at a national institution that
serves Muslims and Christians alike without any distinction. What
happened harms everyone. ' Bishop Younan added that such events sound an
alert that violence is increasing and the rule of law is decreasing. He
called on the authorities to act quickly before all of us reap the
bitter consequences..."
For full article click
here.
=========================================================================
The
views expressed by the authors of the items included do not necessarily
reflect those of Churches for Middle East Peace (CMEP). CMEP is a
coalition of 21 Orthodox, Catholic and Protestant church bodies and
organizations that work together in pursuit of a peaceful resolution of
the Arab-Israeli conflict where two viable states, Israel and Palestine,
live side-by-side within secure and recognized borders.
For more information contact Julie Schumacher Cohen, CMEP's Legislative
Coordinator at 202-543-1222 or at Julie@cmep.org. |
