Don't Give 'Em Guns
Middle East News Service
[ Middle East News Service comments: Yossi Beilin’s heading would be recognised by most Israelis and others who follow the region’s politics closely. The
forces of the Right have always use that slogan against the Palestinian Authority. But quite apart from the allusion,
all supporters of Israel should take heed of his warning. The US/Israeli strategy is muddle headed and fraught with
danger.
The last paragraph says it all: “Those who pay the price of these mistakes are Israelis and Palestinians, who see peace moving further away, and
meanwhile are forced to live with lack of security and concern over the next war, which is facing them from newspaper
headlines.” Beilin, a former member of Barak’s Cabinet and an architect of both the Oslo Accords and Geneva Initiative needs to be
taken seriously –Sol Salbe.]
Don't give 'em guns
Last thing Palestinian Authority needs at this time is more weapons
Yossi Beilin
Prime Minister Ehud Olmert wishes to boost Palestinian President Abbas. President George W. Bush also wishes to
strengthen him. The approach chosen to achieve this objective is to send weapons to forces affiliated with Abbas so that
they can fight against forces loyal to Hamas, Fatah's partner in the Palestinian national unity government.
On the other hand, Olmert maintains his decisive objection to dialogue on a final-status agreement.
What we see here are three grave mistakes: First, the last thing we need to add to the Palestinian Authority is more
weapons. When the PA was established, it had to be allowed to acquire arms, because without enforcing law and order
there would have been no significance to the creation of such Authority.
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[The independent Middle East News Service concentrates on providing alternative information chiefly from Israeli
sources. It is sponsored by the Australian Jewish Democratic Society. The views expressed here are not necessarily those
of the AJDS. These are expressed in its own statements]