UN's Ban seeks Israel-Palestine peace talks during upcoming Middle East visit

[News_Editor]

UN's Ban seeks Israel-Palestine peace talks during upcoming Middle East visit

2012-01-26 16:07:49 GMT+7 (ICT)

NEW YORK (BNO NEWS) -- United Nations Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon on Wednesday announced he will travel to the Middle East next week to encourage peace talks between the Israelis and the Palestinians.

Giving the first press conference of his second term at the UN headquarters in New York, Ban said he will travel to Jordan, Israel and the occupied Palestinian territories. "My visit comes at an important moment," he said.

Israeli and Palestinian negotiators began preparatory talks in Amman at the beginning of January under the facilitation of King Abdullah of Jordan and the country's Foreign Minister, Nasser Judeh.

"I will be there to encourage both sides to re-engage in earnest and create a positive atmosphere for moving forward," Ban said.

In September 2010, direct talks between Israel and the Palestinians stalled after Israel refused to extend its freeze on settlement activity in the occupied Palestinian territory. That decision prompted Palestinian Authority President Mahmoud Abbas to withdraw from direct talks with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, which had only resumed a few weeks earlier after a two-year hiatus.

-- © BNO News All rights reserved 2012-01-26

[Scott]

One off-topic, inflammatory, baiting post was removed and a reply to it.

[flying]

Hopefully it will be done/started

It of course will take an exchange & that is the hold up.

If it is not a give & take from both sides then there is not much hope.

[Jingthing]

Hopefully it will be done/started

It of course will take an exchange & that is the hold up.

If it is not a give & take from both sides then there is not much hope.

Agreed. So it is doomed of course because the Palestinians seem like they will NEVER give up their demand for Arab right of return into the negotiated borders of Israel.

[oldsailor35]

Hopefully it will be done/started

It of course will take an exchange & that is the hold up.

If it is not a give & take from both sides then there is not much hope.

Agreed. So it is doomed of course because the Palestinians seem like they will NEVER give up their demand for Arab right of return into the negotiated borders of Israel.

Why should they.

[Jingthing]

Hopefully it will be done/started

It of course will take an exchange & that is the hold up.

If it is not a give & take from both sides then there is not much hope.

Agreed. So it is doomed of course because the Palestinians seem like they will NEVER give up their demand for Arab right of return into the negotiated borders of Israel.

Why should they.

Because Israel is a sovereign country and like any sovereign country has every right to make its own immigration rules. As it is now, Israel is 20 percent Arab. If the Palestinians return it will be majority Arab and no longer Israel. That might happen someday but it won't happen from peace talks but a military defeat. Interestingly, those on the Palestinian side who do say they want their own state and will settle for that, also say they won't allow even one Jew to be a citizen there. Pretty racist if you ask me.

Your comment brings out an inconvenient truth that I think is obvious. A huge percentage of people who think Israel deserves all the blame for no peace in their region also happen to be in favor of Israel not existing. So you understand my pessimism.

Edited January 26, 2012 by Jingthing

[MrMuddle]

Mr Ban would be better having a holiday, instead of wasting his time with this. Israel simply does not want peace, all they want is continual expansion of their 'territory", while at the same time restricting Palestinian food and water supplies.

[Pedzie]

Mr Ban would be better having a holiday, instead of wasting his time with this. Israel simply does not want peace, all they want is continual expansion of their 'territory", while at the same time restricting Palestinian food and water supplies.

Sad but true!

[Jingthing]

Mr Ban would be better having a holiday, instead of wasting his time with this. Israel simply does not want peace, all they want is continual expansion of their 'territory", while at the same time restricting Palestinian food and water supplies.

Israel does not want peace?

Don't be so sure.

A majority of both Arabs and Jews in Israel believe that Israel and the Palestinian Authority should restart peace negotiations, but think that such talks will not likely lead to peace, a poll released by the Tel Aviv University showed Thursday.

http://www.jpost.com....aspx?id=249715

The justifiably controversial settlements I assume you are alluding to are of course an important area of potential negotiation for final borders.

Palestinians aren't starving so don't even go there.

Edited January 26, 2012 by Jingthing

[Pedzie]

I'm sure some of the people of Israel would welcome peace JT,. the Israeli government? I'm not so sure! With the Israeli gov continually refusing to halt the 'illegal' building of new settlements it does make a lot of people wonder if they really want peace.

[Ulysses G.]

Israel wants peace, but the Palestinian Arabs keep refusing to sign a peace treaty and shooting rockets into civilian areas, so Israel keeps building.

If the Palestinians want their own land, they need to stop the terrorism. That is what land for peace is all about.

Edited January 27, 2012 by Ulysses G.

[flying]

Israel wants peace, but the Palestinian Arabs keep refusing to sign a peace treaty and shooting rockets into civilian areas, so Israel keeps building.

If the Palestinians want their own land, they need to stop the terrorism. That is what land for peace is all about.

Sadly that is the age old which came first the chicken or the egg excuse.

How about they both stop at the same time?

Otherwise the Israelis will say what you just said

The Palestinians will say it is because of the continuing settlements

Edited January 27, 2012 by flying

[Ulysses G.]

Huh? The settlements excuse is a rather new one, but Israel would be happy to "stop" at the same time and they are willing to sign a peace treaty to guarantee it. However, the Palestinians Arabs have refused to sign over and over again.

Edited January 27, 2012 by Ulysses G.

[flying]

Huh? The settlements excuse is a rather new one, but Israel would be happy to "stop" at the same time and they are willing to sign a peace treaty to guarantee it. However, the Palestinians Arabs have refused to sign over and over again.

Well it is a bit different that "Happy To Stop" & actually stopping.

To tell you the truth I am surprised that one or the other cannot just be the bigger person.

It would have the side benefit of garnering world support.

[Ulysses G.]

Happy to stop when a peace treaty is signed and the terrorism stops. It is pretty simple really.

Edited January 27, 2012 by Ulysses G.

[Scott]

And for a couple of posters it's very pedantic. I suggest you discuss the topic rather than each other's choice of words and phrases. This behaviour has gone on long enough and in more than one thread.

I might add, one poster has already received a rather lengthy posting holiday.

Edited January 27, 2012 by Scott
added

[Steely Dan]

Israel wants peace, but the Palestinian Arabs keep refusing to sign a peace treaty and shooting rockets into civilian areas, so Israel keeps building.

If the Palestinians want their own land, they need to stop the terrorism. That is what land for peace is all about.

Sadly that is the age old which came first the chicken or the egg excuse.

How about they both stop at the same time?

Otherwise the Israelis will say what you just said

The Palestinians will say it is because of the continuing settlements

If that were the case why was Israels unilateral pullback from Gaza greeted with a hail of rockets, which has not stopped to this day? It is also bizarre that even though Israel pulled out of Gaza it got precious little recognition for doing so and some elements of the left wing media still refer to Gaza as if it were under Israeli occupation. Well you can't have it both ways, with rights come responsibilities and the Palestinians seem singly unwilling or unable to stop the violence, which would be a precursor to Israel risking giving back more land in exchange for nothing except the usual attacks.

[Morch]

Israel wants peace, but the Palestinian Arabs keep refusing to sign a peace treaty and shooting rockets into civilian areas, so Israel keeps building.

If the Palestinians want their own land, they need to stop the terrorism. That is what land for peace is all about.

I don't think there's such a thing as "Israel wants". Like many countries, Israel isn't as cohesive as one might think. The current political balance favors a more right wing, hawkish, religious orientation, which while repeating the stance of "we want peace", isn't all that much for the compromises it entails.

While it's certainly true that the Palestinian leadership is not the best partner around to make agreements with, they are the ones Israel got to deal with. Breaking agreements, going back on promises etc etc exists on both sides, fanning the flames of mutual mistrust.

A small correction - most of the Israeli dealing are with the Palestinian Authority, based in the West Bank, All of the rockets you refer to are being fired from the Gaza strip, which is currently under Hamas control. This demonstrated both that you can't always relate to nations as a whole and that reaching an agreement here is a pain.

Edited January 27, 2012 by Scott
formatting

[Morch]

Hopefully it will be done/started

It of course will take an exchange & that is the hold up.

If it is not a give & take from both sides then there is not much hope.

Agreed. So it is doomed of course because the Palestinians seem like they will NEVER give up their demand for Arab right of return into the negotiated borders of Israel.

Why should they.

There's quite a lot of refugee property held by Arab Israelis/Palestinians (in Israel, West Bank, Gaza). Some as trusties, some taken over in time. People aren't always so keen to let go of that. In the same way, villages, settelments and cities won't be able to accomodate such an influx of people (the demands usually includes decendants and extended families). Quite a lot of people will be effected, most of them Arabs.

So while there's a vocal, almost uniform support for the Right of Return from the Arab side, there are also quite different views as to what it ought to cover and how to implement it.

It's also interesting to note that while most Arab countries are all for Palestinian refugees rights, they are much less willing to compensate their Jewish citizens who moved out at about the same time.

[Jingthing]

Good point, Morch. I could see a plan of CONDITIONAL right of return/compensation for Palestinian Arabs with good proof of history in the negotiated "final" borders of Israel but unconditional is totally off the table. That is something Israel will never willingly agree to nor should anyone reasonable expect them to.

Edited January 27, 2012 by Jingthing

[coma]

Mr Ban would be better having a holiday, instead of wasting his time with this. Israel simply does not want peace, all they want is continual expansion of their 'territory", while at the same time restricting Palestinian food and water supplies.

Couldn't agree more with this statement.

[Pakboong]

Huh? The settlements excuse is a rather new one, but Israel would be happy to "stop" at the same time and they are willing to sign a peace treaty to guarantee it. However, the Palestinians Arabs have refused to sign over and over again.

Well it is a bit different that "Happy To Stop" & actually stopping.

To tell you the truth I am surprised that one or the other cannot just be the bigger person.

It would have the side benefit of garnering world support.

You would think the side with the 20 plus point average IQ advantage would take the lead on this but that doesn't seem to be in the cards.

[Ulysses G.]

You would think the side with the 20 plus point average IQ advantage would take the lead on this but that doesn't seem to be in the cards.

Israel already took the lead by proposing peace over and over again over many decades, but the other side keeps refusing no matter what concessions are made.

Edited January 27, 2012 by Ulysses G.

[Steely Dan]

Huh? The settlements excuse is a rather new one, but Israel would be happy to "stop" at the same time and they are willing to sign a peace treaty to guarantee it. However, the Palestinians Arabs have refused to sign over and over again.

Well it is a bit different that "Happy To Stop" & actually stopping.

To tell you the truth I am surprised that one or the other cannot just be the bigger person.

It would have the side benefit of garnering world support.

You would think the side with the 20 plus point average IQ advantage would take the lead on this but that doesn't seem to be in the cards.

I think you are overlooking the result of the unilateral pullback from Gaza, any 20 points IQ advantage would quickly evaporate if the Israelis expected any different without cast iron guarantees. As Einstein once said, to keep on repeating the same behaviour and expecting a different result is the definition of insanity.

[Ulysses G.]

A small correction - most of the Israeli dealing are with the Palestinian Authority, based in the West Bank, All of the rockets you refer to are being fired from the Gaza strip, which is currently under Hamas control. This demonstrated both that you can't always relate to nations as a whole and that reaching an agreement here is a pain.

I am sure that you are aware that Hamas and the Palestinian Authority are working together, so both are responsible for the rockets no matter where they originate.

[Morch]

A small correction - most of the Israeli dealing are with the Palestinian Authority, based in the West Bank, All of the rockets you refer to are being fired from the Gaza strip, which is currently under Hamas control. This demonstrated both that you can't always relate to nations as a whole and that reaching an agreement here is a pain.

I am sure that you are aware that Hamas and the Palestinian Authority are working together, so both are responsible for the rockets no matter where they originate.

I'm sure of nothing of the sort.They are, at best, temporary political partners. Nothing more.

If they could, each would wipe out the other. Blood feuds run deep and long in the Middle East.

Even Israel isn't blaming the Palestinian authority for the rockets.

And to take this a step further, it's not even always the Hamas.

What happens sometimes is that Israel and the Hamas reach a sort of temporary truce or ceasefire, then another group (like the Islamic Jihad, which is independent of Hamas) fires a rocket, Israel shoots back, then the Hamas "got" to join in to keep it's reputation.

Not saying that this is always the case, but happened more than once.

Annoying one can't just tag one's enemies :-).

[Steely Dan]

What happens sometimes is that Israel and the Hamas reach a sort of temporary truce or ceasefire, then another group (like the Islamic Jihad, which is independent of Hamas) fires a rocket, Israel shoots back, then the Hamas "got" to join in to keep it's reputation.

How very convenient. It just goes to demonstrate how patently unready and unfit the Palestinians are to assume the responsibilities of statehood. I don't doubt for a minute that different terrorist groups with different paymasters may act independently, but their aim is essentially the same, wipe Israel off the map; then as you observed they would no doubt turn to slaughtering one another in the peace of Dar es Salaam.

[Ulysses G.]

I'm sure of nothing of the sort.They are, at best, temporary political partners. Nothing more.

"Temporary", or not. they both represent the Palestinian Arabs and Hamas' hateful charter makes it impossible for any possibility of peace negotiations to be taken seriously.

[Ulysses G.]

How very convenient. It just goes to demonstrate how patently unready and unfit the Palestinians are to assume the responsibilities of statehood. I don't doubt for a minute that different terrorist groups with different paymasters may act independently, but their aim is essentially the same, wipe Israel off the map

I often suspect that they are playing Good Cop, Bad Cop anyway.

[Jingthing]

Mr Ban would be better having a holiday, instead of wasting his time with this. Israel simply does not want peace, all they want is continual expansion of their 'territory", while at the same time restricting Palestinian food and water supplies.

Couldn't agree more with this statement.

Couldn't be less surprised. Go ahead and paint Israelis as the bad guys and the Palestinians as the good guys. Anyone with the slightest bit of objectivity knows its not that simple.