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Israel Blamed as Palestinians Become More Intransigent

(Jerusalem Post) Zvi Mazel - In spite of Israel's ongoing dialogue with the U.S. to search for the right formula for the resumption of peace talks, the position taken by the Obama administration, and the unfair pressure exerted by the EU, have brought down the fragile structure which had previously made negotiations between Israel and the Palestinians possible. The PA refuses to come back to the negotiation table and has launched an all-out diplomatic, media and legal war against the Jewish state. The EU has issued a call for an Israeli withdrawal to the 1967 borders and for Jerusalem to become the capital of both countries. This would, in effect, render negotiations useless by determining their outcome from the outset. It is as if the world has forgotten that Israel already made the most extraordinary concessions at Camp David and in Taba. Former Prime Minister Olmert made even greater concessions, but that was not enough for Mahmoud Abbas. Here lies the Palestinian paradox: While Israel has made great efforts to move toward a solution, Palestinian leaders, riding the crest of favorable public opinion in the West, are becoming more and more intransigent - and it is Israel which takes the blame. The writer is a former ambassador to Egypt and Sweden.
2010-01-14 08:28:09
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