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Peace Process

Moussa tries to turn tables on Israel

Arab League chief says Israeli partner lacking


By Ryan Jones
May 26, 2006

As Israel works to convince its allies in the West that there is no viable "Palestinian" peace partner, Arab League Secretary-General Amr Moussa Thursday looked to turn the tables, claiming it is the Israeli side that is failing to cooperate.

Speaking to The Jerusalem Post, Moussa urged Israel to reconsider its position on the 2002 Arab peace initiative, also known as the Beirut initiative.

"We have accepted that Israel will exist in our midst; we are ready to end that conflict..." but "this requires a partner. Do we have a partner in the Israeli government that would accept that? Withdrawal? A Palestinian state? A solution for Israel - an agreed solution for Jerusalem, the achievement of a solution for the refugees?"

But Israel has been down this road before, entering into a bilateral diplomatic process to end the conflict on the premise that the Arabs would halt all terrorist activities against the Jews and accept Israel's sovereignty and rightful place in the Middle East. It didn't take in 1993 with Yasser Arafat, and few Israelis have reason to believe this new initiative would end any differently.

Nor did Moussa provide what most Israelis would consider adequate responses to those issues that concern them most: the future of Jerusalem and the so-called "Palestinian right of return."

Moussa spoke as though the resolution of those core issues would be a simple matter of negotiation, but failed to address the fact that from "moderates" like PLO chief Mahmoud Abbas to the radical leaders of Hamas, the "Palestinians" have repeatedly made clear they have no intention of compromising on Jerusalem or their "right" to flood the Jewish state with millions of Arab "refugees."

Throughout the interview, Moussa suggested the Israeli-Arab conflict is based solely on the status of Judea, Samaria and Gaza, and that once that is resolved, "there will be no reason for further confrontation or clashes between the Arabs and the Israelis."

There was no mention of the fact the wider Arab world launched no fewer than three full-scale wars and numerous smaller conflagrations against the Jewish state prior to Israel taking control of those areas.

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