Av 1, 5770, 12 July 10 05:27,
The best way to solve the problem of terrorism in Gaza is to move backward, not forward, says Deputy Minister Ayoub Kara, Druze member of the Likud party.
“What we need to do is declare that Gaza is a part of Egypt," Kara told Arutz Sheva's Hebrew news service in an interview Sunday. "That'a a unilateral move that makes sense. They talk about going back to the way things were in 1967 – so we should keep in mind that back then there was no Palestinian people and Gaza was a part of Egypt, and Judea and Samaria a part of Jordan."
The problem with putting Gaza under the control of the Palestinian Authority is that the PA lacks true control, Kara said. “There is no leadership in the PA, there is nobody prepared to rule. We're playing pretend,” he declared.
When asked why Egypt would agree to return to authority in Gaza, Kara explained that the change in leadership would benefit Egypt as well as Israel. Egypt understands that Iran is developing a foothold in Gaza, and Egypt wants to weaken Hamas and the Muslim Brotherhood.
"[Gaza] is becoming a terrorist power taking orders from Iran. That's a danger to Egypt as well,” Kara stated.
He also spoke about negotiations between Israel and the Palestinian Authority. Kara expressed frustration with the “masochistic” construction freeze in Judea and Samaria, and stated that he is planning to quit his post if the government does not allow construction to resume in September.
Kara also strongly opposed the 2005 Disengagement. He refused to defect to the breakaway Kadima party, preferring to stay in internal opposition with Likud.
If the freeze had a chance of leading to peace, the MK said, he might feel differently. However, he continued, the freeze is more likely to encourage terrorism.
www.IsraelNationalNews.com
Lieberman: Land for Land, Not Land for Peace
Tammuz 29, 5770, 11 July 10 09:24, by Maayana Miskin
(Israelnationalnews.com)
Instead of trying to base negotiations with the Palestinian Authority on the concept of “land for peace,” as it has in the past, Israel should focus on exchanging territory and populations, Foreign Minister Avigdor Lieberman said this week. The minister spoke in an interview for Middle East Magazine, on Voice of Israel state-run radio.
Lieberman has touted his idea of swapping land with the PA for some time, and says that an estimated 70% of Israelis agree with his approach. He recently stated that his party, Yisrael Beiteinu (Israel Our Home), would object to the Kadima party joining the government unless Kadima were to be willing to abandon the “land for peace” approach.
The land and population exchange concept has not yet been adopted by the Netanyahu administration, Lieberman admitted. He attributed the government's continued allegiance to the “land for peace” approach to the presence in the cabinet of ministers who, according to Lieberman, are afraid to make controversial decisions.
Despite that hurdle, the government is closer than ever to adopting a new approach to the Israel-PA conflict, he said.
Population transfer between Israel and the PA would benefit the PA as well as Israeli, Lieberman stated. If the PA were to take control of heavily Arab cities in the eastern Galilee, it would gain a relatively educated and financially stable populace with a developed Palestinian identity, he explained.
Israel's next step should be to hold a national referendum on the subject of population and territory exchange, the foreign minister said. If the idea is proven to enjoy popular support, he continued, Israel should present the idea to the international community and bring it up in discussions with the PA.
www.IsraelNationalNews.com
AFP: Peace deal unlikely by 2012, says Netanyahu
12 July 2010 | 00:14 | FOCUS News Agency
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Jerusalem. Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said in an interview broadcast Sunday that it was unlikely a peace deal with the Palestinians could be implemented by 2012, AFP disclosed.
"Can we have a negotiated peace? Yes. Can it be implemented by 2012? I think it's going to take longer than that," Netanyahu told Fox News.
Asked if he believes there can be a Palestinian state by 2012, Netanyahu said he thought the process needs to take longer.
"I think there can be a solution. It may be implemented over time, because time is an important factor of getting the solution, both in terms of security arrangements and other things that would be difficult if they're not allowed to take place over time," he said.
For the past two months, Israel and the Palestinians have been engaged in a series of US-backed "proximity talks" which have seen US envoy George Mitchell shuttling between the two sides.
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