Israel: new obstacles not mentioned in the roadmap

Al Quds & Al Quds al Arabi NewsPapers, 15.11.07. The Israeli side continues with its attempts to set up conditions in front of Annapolis Conference which is expected to be held on November 26, 2007. Israeli PM Olmert set a condition yesterday on the Palestinian side saying that the Palestinian side must recognize Israel as the state of the Jewish people before start of the negotiations on the establishment of an independent Palestinian state. In the meantime, the Israeli Knesset ratified in principle a new legislation tightening the grip on East Jerusalem. Olmert's Office announced that PM Olmert informed Javier Solana during their talks yesterday that Israel insists that the basis of the negotiations with the Palestinians following Annapolis Conference is to recognize Israel as the pure state of the Jewish people. Palestinian PM Salam Fayyad told Arabia TV yesterday that the PA does not accept such a condition at all. Erekat said Olmert is setting new conditions that are not mentioned in the roadmap. He said the roadmap talks about the Palestinians needing to recognize the absolute right of Israel in existence but does not mention at all the nature of religion of that state. He added: The Israelis have all the right to name their country whatever name they want but the PLO recognizes the state of Israel.
In the meantime, the new draft law that was ratified in principle in the Israeli Knesset stipulates that any amendment on the law of 1980 which announced Jerusalem (West and East) as unified capital of Israel must get the approval of 80 members of the Knesset out of a total of 120 members in the Israeli Knesset. According to the current provision, the approval of 60 members is needed to make any amendment on the law.

The draft law was presented to the Knesset just two weeks before Annapolis Conference to confirm the unified Israeli position on the issue of Jerusalem, as stated by Gideon Sa'ar who presented the draft law. The Knesset also ratified in preliminary reading a draft law on providing compensation to the Israeli side on what the law called as "physical, human and psychological harm" caused directly or indirectly because of the fall of rockets from Gaza Strip. According to the draft law, the compensation will be deducted from the Palestinian tax funds that Israel collects on the Palestinian goods. Jamal Zahalqa, Arab member of the Israeli Knesset commented on the draft law on Jerusalem by saying: the law was passed in preliminary reading and still needs first, second and third reading, but the voting of the majority of the government coalition with the law shows the real intentions of the Israeli government in its negotiations with the Palestinians and it dissolves any illusions or dreams that some Palestinian, Arab and American leaders are trying to promote on the possibility of reaching a reasonable political solution with the government of Olmert. This law is clear proof that the entire Israeli political society is not ready to reach a political settlement and is an official declaration on rejecting such a settlement. We consider East Jerusalem as the capital of the Palestinian state and an occupied territory on which the international law applies and not the Israeli law.

Published at Al Quds & Al Quds al Arabi NewsPapers on November 15, 2007