Netanyahu: Israelis will not be tried for war crimes

Published yesterday (updated) 12/10/2009 18:47

 Bethlehem – Ma’an/Agencies –

Israeli occupation government prime minister, Benjamin Netanyahu, vowed on Monday never to allow Israeli officials or soldiers to be tried for war crimes.

"We will not let Ehud Olmert, Tzipi Livni and Ehud Barak, who sent our sons to war, reach the Hague International Criminal Court,” said Netanyahu, referring to the trio of leaders who launched Operation Cast Lead against Gaza last December.

Addressing the opening meeting of the winter session of the Knesset, Israel’s parliament, Netanyahu went on to harshly criticize Judge Richard Goldstone’s report on alleged war crimes committed during the three-week-long attack.

"This distorted report, written by this distorted committee, undermines Israel's basic right for self-defense,” the prime minister was quoted as saying by the news site Ynet. “This report encourages terror and endangers peace. I want to clarify here: Israel will not take any chances for peace if it cannot defend itself."

During the speech, Ynet reported, Knesset Member Jamal Zahalka, of the Palestinian-Arab party Balad, called out to Netanyahu, "You killed 400 children!" He was then silenced by the parliament speaker.

Netanyahu also reiterated previously-stated conditions for renewed peace talks with the Palestinians. “Without recognizing the State of Israel as the Jews' state we won't be able to reach peace,” he said.

"I have already said that I am not setting any preconditions for peace talks with the Palestinians. We are working so that our joint efforts with US President Obama's administration will lead to their swift resumption,” he added.

Responding to the speech, chief Palestinian negotiator Saeb Erekat said, “Netanyahu is searching for the no partner period, and he has nothing new in his political position and he talks about peace in a PR language and he calls to go back to negotiations without any conditions.”

Dr Saeb Erekat replied to the speech by saying “There is no [peace] partner. Period,” referring to Israel under Netanyahu.

Erekat said Netanyahu “has nothing new in his political position. He talks about peace in the language of public relations.”

“I want to say and assure that we will not be involved [in negotiating toward] a state with temporary borders. We reject any peace process without Jerusalem and the return of the refugees. We will not be the ones to recognize the Jewishness of the state,” he added.

“The Obama administration must intervene because Netenyahu has rejected all the terms of reference of the peace process, including the Road Map.”

Gaza government: We backed Goldstone from the start

Published yesterday (updated) 12/10/2009 21:40

 Gaza – Ma’an –

The Hamas-backed government in the Gaza Strip on Monday denied President Mahmoud Abbas’ allegations that the government did not support the Goldstone report on war crimes.

Government spokesperson Taher Al-Nunu said in a statement, “Goldstone met with the government and its ministers more than once, and he also met with the Prime Minister, Ismail Haniyah, which led him to praise our government in his report clearly, openly and in public.”

After coming under immense public pressure to reverse a decision to delay international action on the report, Abbas and his aides have gone on the offensive against Hamas for what they say is a hypocritical stance. In a speech on Sunday night, Abbas accused Hamas of using the report as an excuse not to sign a unity deal.

“If Mr. Abu Mazen [Abbas] did not read the report, he should have been told about this truth. He went on with his claims about our condemnation of the report even though the prime minister himself [Haniyah] approved of the report with a few comments on it,” Al-Nunu continued.

“The prime minister also called the secretary-general of the Arab League, Amr Moussa, after the issuance of the report and on the eve of its presentation to the UN Human Rights council, demanding that he adopt the report and to submit it to the Security Council,” added Al-Nunu.

Hamas authorities allowed Goldstone’s team to operate in Gaza, while Israel refused to recognize the investigation.

In a speech in Gaza on 20 September, 2009, Haniyah threw his support behind the report. “We hope the report … will not be doomed to the fate of the dozens of reports that Israel has condemned for decades,” he told thousands of worshipers at a prayer service in Yarmouk Stadium.

Al-Nunu continued saying that “President Abbas’ talk about the ‘Emirate of Darkness’ and the ‘black coup’ do not suggest that he is ready for reconciliation and its requirements. These are accusatory words that will create grudges.”

Abbas: “We Delayed Goldstone Report To Recruit More Support”

Sunday October 11, 2009 22:49 by Saed Bannoura - IMEMC & Agencies

Palestinian President, Mahmoud Abbas, stated Sunday that the decision to delay the UN vote on the report of Judge Richard Goldstone was made to recruit more support, and that this decision was made after consultations with different groups at the UN Human Rights Council.

In a TV speech, Abbas said that the Palestinian Authority wants to recruit more support to the report to order to ensure that it is not emptied from its political dimension.

“I do not want to provide details on the circumstances, and the positions of different countries and groups, this is up to the investigation committee”, Abbas said, “We will abide by the results of the committee, and if it finds that the delay is a mistake, we have the courage to admit that we were wrong”.

He added that the campaign that was launched against the delay aims at avoiding signing an internal unity deal, in addition to striking the chances of a unity deal, and is regarded as an attempt to weaken and cause a collapse to the Palestinian Authority.

As for ending internal rifts and divisions, Abbas said that the only way to resolve this issue is elections, so that the people can choose their leadership. He further stated that there will be no peace deal that does not include ending the occupation, and that the peace process should be based on the resolutions of the international community and the principles set by U.S. President Barack Obama.

Abu Zuhri: “Abbas' Speech Contradictory, Filled With Misinformation”

Monday October 12, 2009 00:58 by Saed Bannoura - IMEMC & Agencies

Sami Abu Zuhri, media spokesperson of the Hamas movement, stated that the Sunday speech of president Mahmoud Abbas is filled with contradictions, misinformation and lies.

Abu Zuhri said that Abbas's claims that he wanted to ensure enough countries will support the report during the UN vote are "unacceptable lies” as 33 out of 47 countries intended to vote for the report.

“Unlike what Abbas claims, this is a majority”, Abu Zuhri added. He also said that the Palestinian Authority of Mahmoud Abbas committed a crime by delaying the vote on the Goldstone report, and added that the Palestinians expect Abbas to apologize for what happened and to act on correcting this mistake.

Abu Zuhri further demanded forming a neutral committee to investigate the issue, and added that he holds Abbas fully responsible for what happened. Member of Hamas political bureau, Dr. Mahmoud Al-Zahhar, said that Abbas lives in a state of delusion and lies, and that he is trying to convince the people that what happened is not his fault alone.

As for unity talks, Al-Zahhar said that Hamas leadership cannot hold talks with Abbas due to his acts. “We cannot shake his hand, we cannot feel any respect for this man”, Zahhar added. Several Hamas leaders stated that the speech of Abbas is filled with lies and contradictions, and that the Palestinian people deserve to know the truth.