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Arab League condemns Newt Gingrich's Palestinian stance
A senior Arab League official condemned on Sunday a statement by Republican presidential hopeful Newt Gingrich claiming Palestinians are an "invented" people, calling it racist and a cheap stunt to get votes. However Israeli Cabinet minister Uzi Landau said Gingrich was "right." He claimed the Palestinians do not have their own language or culture, and are instead part of the broader Arab world. Gingrich also called Palestinians "terrorists." The comments struck at the heart of Palestinian sensitivities about the righteousness of their struggle for an independent state. Applying the label "invented" suggests that the Palestinian quest for independence is not legitimate. He later sought to clarify his position, with his spokesman saying he supports the creation of a Palestinian state as part of a negotiated settlement with Israel. "If an Arab or Palestinian official said a racist comment that was one-millionth of what this US candidate said, the world would have been in continuous uproar," said Mohammed Sobeih, the Arab League official who handles Palestinian affairs. Gingrich's comments were "irresponsible and dangerous," he added. "If these comments were made for political gains, then this is an even bigger disaster. But it appears that this is a cheap attempt to get more votes in an election," said Sobeih. "And to get this small number of votes, this person sold America's interests by denying international law and democratic principles." Posted by: tipper 2011-12-11 |
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