The big powers have formally acknowledged for the first time that the policy of isolating Hamas through an economic blockade of Gaza is not working. In a statement issued after talks at foreign minister level in London, the Quartet for Middle East peace opened the door to Egypt to find a "new approach" for Gaza, which was seized by the militant Islamic Hamas movement in June last year. The blockade, which was intended to provoke Palestinians into rejecting the Hamas leadership, has in fact proved counter-productive, and caused a humanitarian catastrophe for the majority of the 1.5 million population of the Gaza Strip.| Counter-productive? In what way? The Hamas leadership could stop all of this simply by putting down the Qassams and agreeing to a two-state solution. Then again, that would remove the principal reason for Hamas to exist. |
At a separate meeting in London, the permanent members of the United Nations Security Council plus Germany came up with a new package of incentives to break the deadlock over Iran's nuclear programme, after Tehran rejected earlier initiatives. However details were only to be unveiled after the proposals had been presented to Iranian authorities.
The Quartet meeting was attended by the United States, Russia, the EU and the UN, which sent the UN secretary general Ban Ki-moon. Tony Blair was also present as the Quartet's envoy.