Friday, August 29, 2008

Abbas Anti-Peace Statement

The Jerusaelm Post, quoting AP, informs us that the head of the Authority of the Arabs in the disputed territories, Mahmoud Abbas had said Thursday that he rejects the idea that Palestinian refugees living in Lebanon might be forced to stay there permanently, saying (AFP report

all Palestinians should have the right to return home
.

And stating

"We are against the resettlement of Palestinians in Lebanon."


Just that you should know, in Lebanon alone, there are claimed to be some 400,000 Arab refugees from the former Palestine Mandate area, including their descendants.

Many Lebanese oppose the permanent resettlement of these refugees in their country, not so much because they care about another Arab state and its potential citizens but they fear these persons would tip the country's delicate sectarian balance and provide recruits for some of the most fanatic and extreme terror groups.

Anonymous sources within Israel's political establishment were a bit taken aback and tried to save the negotiations by declaring over the state-sponsored radio:-

Political sources in Jerusalem reacted by saying that Israel's position is that refugees will only be permitted to enter a Palestinian state, if and when such a state is established, and not into Israel.


The 'right of return', as all know, is a death knell for Israel.

They should be concerned because one Arab analyst has written, comparing the Georgia situation with that of Hizbullah in Lebanon:-

The pro-US President Mikheil Saakashvili of Georgia ordered the bombardment of the Russian-majority South Ossetia province. This gave the Russians the justification to invade Georgia on August 8, 2008 and occupy South Ossetia and Abkhazia regions, just as the abduction of two Israeli soldiers in July 2006 by Hizbullah


All this bodes ill for peace.

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