ouizy
Rock n' Roll Doggie
When all sides of Israeli/Palestinian conflict (including third-party outsiders) are determined to create a Palestinian state and bring about peace in the region, yet terrorist groups like Hamas "decide" to cut off talks - we know where the power lies and we know there will never be peace until these groups are eradicated. The fact that this group of terrorists were even given the opportunity to hold talks with as legitimate a leader as the Palestinians could find is a shame. The fact that the terrorists cut off talks and say things like:
"We are cutting off all dialogue with the Palestinian Authority"
it is clear they have no goal, but for terror and death and anyone who supports this point of view is as guilty as the suicide bomber who enacts their vision.
They are not trying for peace, they are not trying for diplomacy, all they want is war, and war is not the answer.
This is a true shame, but I hope it opens up some eyes.
GAZA CITY (CNN) -- The Palestinian Islamic fundamentalist group Hamas on Friday stopped talks with Palestinian Prime Minister Mahmoud Abbas on a possible cease-fire with Israel.
"We are cutting off all dialogue with the Palestinian Authority," said Hamas leader Abdel-Aziz al-Rantissi, accusing it of trying to dictate the terms of Wednesday's peace summit in Aqaba, Jordan, to the group.
Hamas, whose military wing has been responsible for many of the recent terror attacks against Israeli civilians as well as the Israeli military, has been labeled by the U.S. State Department as a terrorist organization.
In reaction to the Hamas announcement, U.S. National Security Council spokesman Mike Anton said, "There's now a real prospect for peace. All parties agree that terrorism needs to stop and that all parties must fight terror. Those who pursue terror have made clear that they are enemies of peace."
The Palestinian Authority said it had received no formal notification from Hamas that it is stopping talks and will not accept such a stance. The authority said it will continue to carry through with its pledge to clamp down on violence, no matter what its justification may be.
Hamas founder Sheikh Ahmed Yassin also said the group is cutting off dialogue with the Palestinian Authority. In recent talks, Abbas has urged Hamas accept a cease-fire and an end to attacks against Israelis.
At the historic meeting in Jordan, Abbas, U.S. President George W. Bush and Israeli Prime Minister Ariel Sharon showed support for the Middle East road map, which sets out procedures that would lead to two states -- Israel and Palestine -- existing together in peace.
Yassin said the dialogue has been halted because of the "bad position" that ignored the status of Jerusalem and the issue of the right of Palestinian refugees to return to the region.
Using Abbas' popular name, Yassin said that "Abu Mazen gave the Jews what they did not deserve."
"I believe that Abu Mazen himself closed the door in front of Hamas because he committed himself in front of Bush and Sharon" to positions opposed by the Palestinians, said Rantissi.
A two-page Hamas leaflet passed out in Gaza Friday urged Palestinians not to accept the dictates of this week's summits in Egypt and Jordan, especially Abbas' calls for an end to the armed intifada, the uprising that began in September 2000.
The strongly worded leaflet said the United States was trying to impose its position on the Palestinians and it called on Palestinians and the Arab world to oppose such dictates.
At Wednesday's summit in Aqaba, Abbas called for an end to terrorism and Sharon pledged to remove "unauthorized outposts" from the West Bank and Gaza and do what it takes for the establishment of "a viable Palestinian state."
On Thursday, an Israeli diplomat said Israel would begin dismantling the outposts in a few days.
Speaking on CNN's "Q&A," the Israeli ambassador to the United States, Danny Ayalon, said: "We are taking concrete steps. [Israel] is going to dismantle them all. It's going to do it in a phased-out manner."
He added that the larger question of the Jewish settlements in the West Bank and Gaza that have been authorized by the Israeli government "is a political issue, which will be dealt with according to agreements and understandings" in a final status agreement.
U.S. groups back road map
Meanwhile, two U.S. groups -- one Jewish and the other Arab -- have begun a joint campaign to back the Middle East peace plan.
Americans for Peace Now and the Arab American Institute will provide speakers to discuss the road map, as well as co-writing op-ed pieces and sharing "talking points" that focus on "the benefits of the initiative."
James Zogby, president of the Arab American Institute, said the work reflects a "common consensus of Arab Americans and Jewish Americans for a just solution to the Israeli-Palestinian conflict."
Some of the talking points include the casualties both sides have suffered, the poor economic situations in Israel, the West Bank, and Gaza, and public support on both sides for peace moves.
Hamas members killed
Violence continued as Israeli forces killed two Hamas members during an overnight operation near the West Bank town of Tulkarem, according to Israeli and Palestinian sources.
The Israeli soldiers were in the village of Ateil, northeast of Tulkarem, late Thursday to arrest a member of Hamas, according to the Israel Defense Forces. They approached a house where several Hamas operatives were holed up, and asked them to surrender, the IDF said.
When the operatives did not respond, the Israeli forces attacked the house and a gunfight erupted leaving two Hamas members dead and wounding a third, the IDF said.
Palestine Red Crescent Society officials said the members did not resist the Israeli forces, quoting eyewitness accounts. The IDF said Israeli soldiers found three Kalashnikov rifles and a pistol inside the house after the gun battle
"We are cutting off all dialogue with the Palestinian Authority"
it is clear they have no goal, but for terror and death and anyone who supports this point of view is as guilty as the suicide bomber who enacts their vision.
They are not trying for peace, they are not trying for diplomacy, all they want is war, and war is not the answer.
This is a true shame, but I hope it opens up some eyes.
GAZA CITY (CNN) -- The Palestinian Islamic fundamentalist group Hamas on Friday stopped talks with Palestinian Prime Minister Mahmoud Abbas on a possible cease-fire with Israel.
"We are cutting off all dialogue with the Palestinian Authority," said Hamas leader Abdel-Aziz al-Rantissi, accusing it of trying to dictate the terms of Wednesday's peace summit in Aqaba, Jordan, to the group.
Hamas, whose military wing has been responsible for many of the recent terror attacks against Israeli civilians as well as the Israeli military, has been labeled by the U.S. State Department as a terrorist organization.
In reaction to the Hamas announcement, U.S. National Security Council spokesman Mike Anton said, "There's now a real prospect for peace. All parties agree that terrorism needs to stop and that all parties must fight terror. Those who pursue terror have made clear that they are enemies of peace."
The Palestinian Authority said it had received no formal notification from Hamas that it is stopping talks and will not accept such a stance. The authority said it will continue to carry through with its pledge to clamp down on violence, no matter what its justification may be.
Hamas founder Sheikh Ahmed Yassin also said the group is cutting off dialogue with the Palestinian Authority. In recent talks, Abbas has urged Hamas accept a cease-fire and an end to attacks against Israelis.
At the historic meeting in Jordan, Abbas, U.S. President George W. Bush and Israeli Prime Minister Ariel Sharon showed support for the Middle East road map, which sets out procedures that would lead to two states -- Israel and Palestine -- existing together in peace.
Yassin said the dialogue has been halted because of the "bad position" that ignored the status of Jerusalem and the issue of the right of Palestinian refugees to return to the region.
Using Abbas' popular name, Yassin said that "Abu Mazen gave the Jews what they did not deserve."
"I believe that Abu Mazen himself closed the door in front of Hamas because he committed himself in front of Bush and Sharon" to positions opposed by the Palestinians, said Rantissi.
A two-page Hamas leaflet passed out in Gaza Friday urged Palestinians not to accept the dictates of this week's summits in Egypt and Jordan, especially Abbas' calls for an end to the armed intifada, the uprising that began in September 2000.
The strongly worded leaflet said the United States was trying to impose its position on the Palestinians and it called on Palestinians and the Arab world to oppose such dictates.
At Wednesday's summit in Aqaba, Abbas called for an end to terrorism and Sharon pledged to remove "unauthorized outposts" from the West Bank and Gaza and do what it takes for the establishment of "a viable Palestinian state."
On Thursday, an Israeli diplomat said Israel would begin dismantling the outposts in a few days.
Speaking on CNN's "Q&A," the Israeli ambassador to the United States, Danny Ayalon, said: "We are taking concrete steps. [Israel] is going to dismantle them all. It's going to do it in a phased-out manner."
He added that the larger question of the Jewish settlements in the West Bank and Gaza that have been authorized by the Israeli government "is a political issue, which will be dealt with according to agreements and understandings" in a final status agreement.
U.S. groups back road map
Meanwhile, two U.S. groups -- one Jewish and the other Arab -- have begun a joint campaign to back the Middle East peace plan.
Americans for Peace Now and the Arab American Institute will provide speakers to discuss the road map, as well as co-writing op-ed pieces and sharing "talking points" that focus on "the benefits of the initiative."
James Zogby, president of the Arab American Institute, said the work reflects a "common consensus of Arab Americans and Jewish Americans for a just solution to the Israeli-Palestinian conflict."
Some of the talking points include the casualties both sides have suffered, the poor economic situations in Israel, the West Bank, and Gaza, and public support on both sides for peace moves.
Hamas members killed
Violence continued as Israeli forces killed two Hamas members during an overnight operation near the West Bank town of Tulkarem, according to Israeli and Palestinian sources.
The Israeli soldiers were in the village of Ateil, northeast of Tulkarem, late Thursday to arrest a member of Hamas, according to the Israel Defense Forces. They approached a house where several Hamas operatives were holed up, and asked them to surrender, the IDF said.
When the operatives did not respond, the Israeli forces attacked the house and a gunfight erupted leaving two Hamas members dead and wounding a third, the IDF said.
Palestine Red Crescent Society officials said the members did not resist the Israeli forces, quoting eyewitness accounts. The IDF said Israeli soldiers found three Kalashnikov rifles and a pistol inside the house after the gun battle