Five years ago today President George W. Bush sent a letter to then-Prime Minister Ariel Sharon endorsing Israel's plan to hold on to part of the West Bank in any final peace settlement with the Palestinians; he also ruled out Palestinian refugees returning to Israel, bringing strong criticism from the Palestinians, and further prejudicing the American position towards issues up for negotiations. In Palestinian politics today:
Hamas presented three options to move past the current rift with the Fatah movement. Fawzi Barhoum, a Hamas spokesman in Gaza, said the three options are: to form a government with Palestinian agenda without commitment to the international requirements; or a government without a political platform; or a unity government that respects the international requirements. One dividing point is whether a new government is committed to the Quartet's requirements. Hamas doesn't want to recognize the state of Israel before negotiations.
Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas made a surprise visit to Kurdish Iraq yesterday, stopping over in Irbil. Last week, Abbas urged Israel to accept the two-state solution from Iraq.
Despite some unconfirmed reports that the Fatah-Hamas agreement will resemble a "confederation," Hamas announced that the inter-Palestinian unity dialogue will resume on April 26. A Fatah envoy met yesterday with Islamic Jihad officials, who called for a constructive dialogue between Hamas and Fatah.
HEADLINES
Palestine
Palestinian doctor nominated for Nobel peace prize (Jewish Telegraphic Agency)
Radio Prison: studio designed to broadcast the voices of Palestinian political prisoners (Palestine News Network)
Prices of goods, especially food, soaring (Ma'an News Agency)
70% of Palestinian Youth Oppose Violence; 80% depressed (Middle East Times)
Hamas denies ties with Hezbollah cell (Xinhua)
Erekat: Israeli rejection of Palestinian state is a rejection of negotiations (Ma'an News Agency)
Police: Explosives stashed in West Bank mosque (The Associated Press)
Bullets still fly, but Hamas and Fatah unite on one thing: soccer (Ha'aretz)
Hamas considers prisoners swap with Israel honor issue (Xinhua)
Gaza boat explodes in attack attempt: Israel (Reuters)
Israel
Benjamin Netanyahu introduces his government (Jerusalem Post)
Netanyahu: We can bring over 1 million tourists to Israel per year (Ynetnews)
Israel lobbies Russia on Iranian arms sales (Reuters)
Israel fails to stop S-300 deal with Iran? (PRESS TV)
Israel sells spy drones to Russian air force (United Press International)
Lebanese man admits to spying for Israel (Jerusalem Post)
Amos Oz, Approaching 70, Sees Israel With a Bird’s-Eye View (New York Times)
Military court rules in favor of extremist settlers (OpEdNews)
Ariel teens suspected of selling stolen goods to Palestinians (Ynetnews)
The Neighbors
Mossad tip led to capture of Hezbollah cell in Sinai (Ha'aretz)
Syria seen keen on new peace talks with Israel (Reuters)
Egypt boosts security on border with Israel (Reuters)
Lebanon's Hezbollah savors increasing legitimacy (Los Angeles Times)
US Foreign Policy
Jordan king to meet Obama this month (AFP)
US, Israel to hold huge military drill (United Press International)
US Mideast envoy Mitchell arrives in Morocco (AFP)
International Law
The Jew charged with investigating Israel (Jewish Telegraphic Agency)
Durban II Conference
Iran president to attend Geneva racism meet: UN (Reuters)
US rethinking boycott of UN meeting on racism (The Associated Press)
US still unhappy over 'Durban II' draft (Jerusalem Post)
Activism
Students object as Clark University cancels Norman Finkelstein talk (Boston Herald)
Providence Film Fest showcases Palestinian life (The Brown Daily Herald)
Tesco under attack for adding call option to complain about Israeli products (Food Business Review)
Palestinians Protest Exhibition of Dead Sea Scrolls in Toronto (New York Times)
Art
Portrait of an artist as a young Palestinian (Yemen Times)
Commentary
George Mitchell returns to Israel to begin Obama-Netanyahu faceoff (Mondoweiss)
Trita Parsi: Israel Is Bluffing: Constant War Threats Against Iran Are Empty, But Still Dangerous (AlterNet)
Simon Liebling ’12: Student power for Palestine (The Brown Daily Herald)
Laila El-Haddad: I Was Born Palestinian (Raising Yousuf and Noor: diary of a Palestinian mother)
Fired PA envoy: Palestinians 'deserve a better leadership' (Jerusalem Post)
Stephen Walt: Can the United States put pressure on Israel?: A user's guide (Foreign Policy)
Views expressed on this post or on linked web pages do not represent the Palestine Center, the educational program of the Jerusalem Fund for Education and Community Development. All content is for educational purposes only.
