Mladenov said Israel’s West Bank settlement-building is making the prospect of a cohesive Palestinian state “much more hard and complicated”, Palestinian divisions are hampering peace efforts, and the ongoing “violence, terrorism and incitement” are undermining trust between the two sides. We need to hear their voices, understand their pain, and say that our Democratic Party understands that this is conflict that must be resolved by respecting the rights of both peoples.
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The Quartet – the US, UN, EU and Russian Federation – was formed in 2002 as a group of mediators to try to give impetus to faltering peace talks.
Thirty-five Israelis have been killed in knife, gun and car-ramming attacks since October. In the 24 hours before the report was published, Palestinians carried out three attacks on Israelis leaving two dead and others wounded and the government said the Palestinians didn’t condemn them, instead referring to one attacker as a “martyr”.
“The Quartet has outlined a reasonable set of steps that if implemented sincerely and resolutely, with support from the global community, could set Israelis and Palestinians on firmly along a navigable course towards establishing a comprehensive peace”, he said, without elaborating further. “Palestinian frustration can not be wished away”.
“Regrettably”, the report read, “Palestinian leaders have not consistently and clearly condemned specific terrorist attacks”. Israel has killed at least 201 Palestinians, 136 of whom it said were assailants. Upholding the commitment to act effectively against violence, terrorism, and incitement is critical to rebuilding confidence and to avoiding escalation that will further undermine the prospects for peace.
In a statement, OIC Secretary General Iyad Madani commented on the report, which proposes a negotiated two-state solution as the only way to achieve peace between Israel and Palestine.
Quartet report cites violence, settlements and Gaza as barriers to Middle East peace, UN envoy Continuing violence, terrorism and incitement, settlement expansion, and the Palestinian Authority’s lack of control of Gaza are hurting the Middle East peace process, the United Nations envoy today said summarizing the first ever report by the diplomatic Quartet – comprising the United Nations, Russia, the United States and the European Union – to the Security Council.
U.S. State Department spokesman John Kirby said “We would be open to having the (U.N.) Security Council welcome the report”.
As to “settlement expansion, land designations and denial of Palestinian development”, the report said that this was all “steadily eroding the viability of a two state solution”.
According to the report, 70% of Area C, which makes up 60% of the West Bank land, has “been unilaterally taken for exclusive Israeli use”.
Israel captured the West Bank, Gaza Strip and east Jerusalem in the 1967 Mideast War.
Now we have an opportunity to send a message to the world – to Arabs, Israelis, Palestinians and to all Americans – that America wants to move towards a real peace because it understands that there’s suffering there that is unsustainable.
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There are now at least 570,000 settlers living in the West Bank and east Jerusalem, which the Palestinians hope to make the capital of their future state.
