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| Israel-Palestine |
| Israel Welcomes Palestinian Truce Deal |
| 2005-03-18 |
| Israel on Friday welcomed a temporary truce declared by Palestinian militants and promised to hold its fire in return, but demanded that the Palestinian Authority eventually dismantle the armed groups. The 13 main Palestinian militant groups announced Thursday they would halt attacks on Israel for the rest of the year, so far the longest period of promised calm and a success for Palestinian leader Mahmoud Abbas. Negotiating with the militants, rather than confronting them, is a cornerstone of Abbas' policies. |
| Posted by:Fred |
| #4 L-Hawk: "and as Frank says, the fence grows" unfortunately, so do paleo armaments. I'm afraid it's merely a matter of time before they decide that Israel has "violated" the agreement. My only hope is that Israel has effective plans for that eventuality. |
| Posted by: PlanetDan 2005-03-18 4:59:27 PM |
| #3 BAR - I suspect they know PRECISELY what Abbas' capabilities are at this point, and know that his actions arent that far behind capabilities - OTOH they have to keep the demand up, so that he doesnt slink out as his capabilities grow. and as Frank says, the fence grows. Syria is chased out of Lebanon. Jordan is proposing a regional deal that drops the right of return, among other things. Egypt returned its ambassador to Israel for the first time in 4 years. Tunisia renewed contacts with Israel. Why force a confrontation when time is on your side? |
| Posted by: liberalhawk 2005-03-18 2:55:37 PM |
| #2 meanwhile the "friendship fence" building continues |
| Posted by: Frank G 2005-03-18 2:43:42 PM |
| #1 Negotiating with the militants, rather than confronting them, is a cornerstone of Abbas' policies. I don't know why the Israelis keep demanding that Mazen dismantle terrorist groups in his territory. He hasn't done so, and is not likely to. Further talks between the Israelis and the Paleos would a clear demonstration of insanity. |
| Posted by: Bomb-a-rama 2005-03-18 2:35:23 PM |