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| Africa North |
| Egyptian FM: Hamas 'True Partner' for Peace |
| 2011-05-19 |
| Egyptian Foreign Minister Nabeel Arabi told Italian newspaper La Republica on Wednesday he had brokered the Fatah-Hamas reconciliation deal in the hopes of creating "a true partner" for peace. "With this united Palestinian [government] Israel can negotiate for real, can carry through the implementation of UN Resolution 181 of 1947 which called for an Israeli and a Palestinian state," Arabi said in the interview. During the interview Arabi dismissed concerns that Hamas, being a terrorist organization, would actually hurt the peace process. "Even George Washington was considered a terrorist, Menachem Begin and Yitzhak Shamir, as well," he said. Arabi, scheduled to become secretary-general of the Arab League in July, said Hamas would agree to negotiate with Israel, despite the fact that some of the organization's members called for violence against the Jewish State. Hamas co-founder Mahmoud al-Zahar said Wednesday he rejected peace talks with Israel and that Hamas would not allow Palestinian Authority Chairman Mahmoud Abbas to pursue them. Last week al-Zahar said any peace agreement with Israel would be a prelude to war. "Egypt is ready to organize negotiations together with the United States and do what Clinton, Bush and Obama have asked, to create an Israeli and a Palestinian State," Arabi said. |
| Posted by:Steve White |