By Karin Laub, The Associated Press, Jordan Times.
RAMALLAH – With combative speeches at the United Nations, the Palestinian and Israeli leaders have locked themselves into positions that seem to preclude a resumption of peace talks and usher in a season of confrontation over a Palestinian state.
Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas will now focus on rallying international support, his aides say, in hopes of pressuring and isolating Israel and driving up the political cost of holding on to the lands it occupied in the 1967 war.
Abbas insisted Saturday that he won’t go back to talks without an Israeli settlement freeze or acceptance of pre-1967 borders as a starting point.
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, while calling for new talks, gave no sign he is willing to consider those demands.
Instead, he reiterated in interviews with Israeli TV stations that the Palestinians must recognise Israel as a “Jewish state” and that talks would first have to address security arrangements.
Considering the vast gaps, international mediators did not offer bridging proposals after the two leaders’ speeches, instead simply urging a resumption of talks and a deal within about a year. But such target dates have little meaning without real pressure and previous timetables were quickly cast aside.
The Palestinians, bypassing what they see as pointless talks with the historically hardline Netanyahu, will now try to boost their standing, mainly at the UN.
On Friday, Abbas submitted a request for UN membership of a state of Palestine in the West Bank, Gaza and East Jerusalem, areas Israel occupied in 1967 and since populated with half-a-million settlers living among about four million Palestinians.
Even though the recognition bid is sure to be derailed – either by insufficient support or a US veto in the UN Security Council – the Palestinians stand a good chance of a General Assembly status upgrade that would grant them access to UN agencies and international courts.
The aim is to “pressure Israel through all UN agencies”, said Abbas aide Nabil Shaath.
Categories: Asia, Human Rights, Israel, Palestine