WorldFutures.info - The Israeli pattern to delay peace continues

Home

Dzul g's Without Prejudice

The Israeli pattern to delay peace continues

Written by Staff Writer
Wednesday, 30 July 2008
WorldFutures is proven right again. The Middle East peace talks is again in limbo with the expected resignation of Israeli Prime Minister in September this year. In May this year, WorldFutures reported that peace will not become a reality in the Middle East between Israel and the Palestinians due to the Israeli tactic of pushing its Prime Minister away from power while a signing of the peace talks is near. We are proven right with the latest development in Israel where the PM has announced that he will resign by September. News agencies are now screaming that peace will be in limbo if Ehud Olmert leaves office, which is not a surprise to us. Olmert to quit, leaving Mideast peace initiative to uncertain fate By Dion Nissenbaum \| McClatchy Newspapers JERUSALEM — Embattled Prime Minister Ehud Olmert announced Wednesday that he will resign in September, bringing a premature end to his hopes of leading Israel into a stable era of peace with its Arab neighbors. Facing a deepening political corruption investigation, Olmert said he would step aside when his ruling Kadima Party chooses a new leader in seven to eight weeks. Olmert made it clear that he was reluctantly stepping aside because the expanding corruption allegations had undermined his ability to lead the nation. "I am not doing this because I cannot fulfill my responsibilities," Olmert said in a short, live televised address from his Jerusalem home. "I believe with all my strength in my ability to continue in my mission, just as I believe in my righteousness and my innocence," he argued. "But this campaign of mudslinging occurring these days, even on the part of fair people who are truly worried about the state and its reputation, raises questions that I cannot and do not wish to avoid." Olmert's decision will make it much harder for him to cement a legacy by securing landmark peace deals with Syria or the Palestinians before he leaves office. "He is a lame duck and this curtails his ability to do anything really dramatic in the areas of war and peace," said Yossi Alpher, a former Israeli Mossad official who now serves as co-director of the bitterlemons.org political Web site. Hopes of reaching peace deals by year's end were already a long shot, even before Olmert announced he would step aside. Now it is all but certain that the job will be left to his successor. His announcement came as Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice met in Washington with top Israeli and Palestinian negotiators, including Tsipi Livni, Israel's popular foreign minister, and a candidate to succeed Olmert. Talks, re-launched at the Annapolis conference last November, appear to have made some progress, but the sides have revealed few details, and no breakthrough on key issues appears imminent. Although Israeli, Palestinian and U.S. officials pledged Wednesday to continue negotiations, a deal is unlikely. Standing in the way are Olmert's weak standing, Israeli political upheaval that could last into October or beyond and emotional issues such as the status of Jerusalem, the fate of Palestinian refugees and the future of Jewish settlements. Calls for Olmert to resign increased in May after American businessman Morris Talansky told Israeli police that he had given the Israeli leader tens, if not hundreds, of thousands of dollars in cash over the last 15 years. Earlier this month, new allegations emerged that Olmert had double-billed companies and non-profit groups for travel and then used the money to pay for family vacations. In his address, Olmert apologized for making unspecified mistakes in his career. But he blasted "self-proclaimed righteous fighters" who had staged "wicked attacks" meant to bring him down. "Whoever is preaching morals to me today will need to one day face the truth as it rises to face them," Olmert said before leaving without taking questions from assembled reporters. "I don't think this is cataclysmic," said Hanan Ashrawi, a moderate Palestinian lawmaker who served as part of the late-Yasser Arafat's negotiating team in the early 1990s. "I don't think Olmert was the great hope for peace and I don't think his resignation is the end of peace." While Olmert battles the corruption allegations, Kadima Party leaders will be fighting for the right to take his place. Olmert's most likely successor in Kadima is either Livni or Shaul Mofaz, the country's more hawkish transportation minister and former defense minister. Livni is currently favored in polls by Israeli voters and members of the Kadima Party. But Mofaz is believed to be favored by Olmert, who has a frosty relationship with Livni and could make it hard for her to rise as Israel's second female prime minister. The Kadima Party is scheduled to hold its first vote to choose a new leader on Sept. 17, with a second round scheduled a week later. Once Olmert resigns, Israeli President Shimon Peres will have a week to name someone, probably the new Kadmia leader, to form a new coalition government. That person would then have up to 42 days to establish a new coalition. If the attempt failed, Israel would be thrown into elections within three months. That could open the door for former Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, the hard-line Likud Party leader who opposes peace talks with Syria and the Palestinians, to return to office. Latest polls show Likud and a Kadima Party led by Livni in a dead heat among Israeli voters. Olmert first took over as acting prime minister in January 2006 when Ariel Sharon suffered a devastating stroke from which he never recovered. Two months later, Olmert led the newly created Kadima Party to a modest victory in elections. Olmert formed a center-left government with the Labor Party that was almost immediately tested when Hezbollah fighters in Lebanon captured two Israeli soldiers in a July 12, 2006 cross-border raid. Olmert launched a costly 34-day war that failed to bring the soldiers home, emboldened Hezbollah in Lebanon and fatally damaged the prime minister's image at home. (Warren P. Strobel in Washington and McClatchy special correspondent Cliff Churgin in Jerusalem contributed to this article.) Related Articles: The Taliban Rising Taliban: US heading for historic defeat Comments (0) Subscribe to this comment's feed Show/Hide comments Write comment Name Email Website Title Comment Write the displayed characters Powered by Azrul's Jom Comment

< Prev		Next >

[ Back ]

More Headlines

1/10

Festival of brides in Jeddah

JEDDAH: The Women Welfare Society will organize a three-day folklore bride festival under the sponsorship of Princess Alanoud bint Abdullah bin Muhammad at Jeddah Hilton from Saturday.

Latest

Health Ministry stocks up on supplies for Haj

RIYADH: The Ministry of Health has distributed SR100 million worth of medicines and medical equipment to seven hospitals and 153 primary health care centers in Makkah, Madinah and the holy sites for use during the Haj season.

Newsflash

After oil, a gold mania

A gold mania could happen.

Here's why... Gold manias begin when investors flee real estate, currencies, bonds, and stocks because their prospects are so bleak. We're close to that right now.

Additional Items

Send us Ramadhan Pictures and win

In an effort to encourage children to fast and give them a hint of the benefits they can obtain here on earth and what they will get in the hereafter too, we want you, readers to send us what you think is your best pictures for this Ramadhan month.

A sample photo is published here. Readers can see the solace and beauty in this photo from the Philippines!

911

A WF EXCLUSIVE: It is the Occupation, stupid

The writer is a former Secretary Interior. This is an exclusive article for WorldFutures. Pakistan: Nov 2008 =

US President-elect in his victory speech bracketed financial crisis with the two wars to define crucial challenges calling for immediate action on his part. This reflects his sagacity which manifests his worldview etc. It is an open secret that while Iraq is comparatively quiet, thanks to Gen Petraeus’ initiatives, Afghanistan has become a quagmire for US. The current Administration, which exploited the fear-complex provoked by 9/11, remains bogged down. While maintaining hostile posturing and invoking EU’ bigger deployment of troops, the increasing casualties appear to have brought in the Saudi King to ingratiate the Taliban.

MiddleEast Conflict

US Antiballistic missile in Israel a world threat

The real threat is what motivated the US to install such systems in Israel. Does it intend to use Israel as stepping stone to launch 'conquests' in the Middle East and prevent the future natural 'democratic' processes from operating, such as in Palestine where the Hamas won an elections but was 'ousted' in a US sponsored and Israeli supported Coup?

Islam

The Haj. a unique pilgrimage

The Haj season is here. It is a unique pilgrimage with various fascets and all of them are as amazing and as mystical as it can get. Muslims performs the Haj at least once in their lifetime. It is one of the five pillars of Islam and some 2 to 3 million Muslims will be at Makka for the Haj.

Features

Sajahan Abd Waheed: Reject all forms of radicalism

By : Sajahan Abdul Waheed

For NST.com.my

PETALING JAYA: As societies become more multiracial, there is a danger of people falling into a new and destructive form of modern day tribalism.

Civilization

Hotels with Masjids, a surprise to MP Zulkifli Nordin Malaysian MP Zulkifli Nordin expressed great surprise at the Surau Nurul Hikmah which is situated in the De Palma Hotel Ampang. As a matter of fact, this is a trend that started in some other countries for some time now.

Islamic World

Analysis: The War in Afghanistan and Pakistan

History also bears out that the Afghans can’t tolerate ‘occupation’. No wonder since 2006 the Taliban have been on the rampage. Even Kabul remains tentatively safe. During my last visit home to Peshawar, I was met by a few Afghans who told me of the reign of terror prevailing in Jalalabad, Paktia and Kabul etc as the state machinery/ foreign forces could not cope with prevailing mayhem. The spill-over effect of Afghan ‘insurgency’ is widely felt in Pakistan; more so in NWFP/ Baluchistan. History and geography combine to create challenges which the elected Govt and its armed forces have to face daily.

Late News Items

UK: Government endorses sharia

By Steve Doughty
Last updated at 12:09 AM on 25th October 2008

Islamic courts have been cleared to deal with family and divorce disputes.

Editor Notes

Malaysia: Winds of change versus Umno resilience

In addition to the article by Mansor Puteh, we have this editorial that explains on the difficulties the PR will face in the near future or when it wins the elections in Malaysia in the future. Too many issues are at stake here for us not to analyse what Mansor Puteh has said in his article Can History Repeat in Malaysia.

Analysis

Analysis: DSAI power game plan that fell apart

The main plan of the opposition was to get the MP's from Sabah to jump ship and form a new national government with the PR, thus toppling the BN and elect Anwar Ibrahim as Prime Minister.

Additional reading: Winds of change versus Umno resilience

West\'s wars against Muslims

Another horrible story of American inhumanity

The Asian Human Rights Commission (AHRC) has received information that Dr. Afia Siddiqui, was arrested along with her three children by a Pakistani intelligence agency in early 2003 and has been missing since then. American and Pakistani intelligence agencies confirmed that she had been arrested in connection with Al-Qaeda, the terrorist organisation run by Osama Bin Laden. However, later both agencies denied that she had been arrested. Dr. Afia's whereabouts remain unknown but it is suspected that she is being held in an American detention centre.

west wars

South Ossetia: A monumental miscalculation

We publish this opinion article from the Monday Morning newspaper published in Beirut, Lebanon. Article is written by Gwynne Dyer.

Mindanao Peace is almost there

Viewing

Healing Therapy: Bio Magnetic Bracelet

My Thoughts

Bali bombers fought maksyat or social degeneration

Very few people in Jakarta commented on the 'rising' sentiments towards the bombers but deep inside many think the bombers – especially Imam Samudra – went to the extent of bombing Bali due to their rigid beliefs regarding 'Maksyat' or illicit life styles.

Asia Confidential

Will Obama support Anwar Ibrahim all out?

The Malaysian government is one of the first foreign regimes to have quickly congratulated Barack Husein Obama on his massive victory in the Presidential polls but their message to the newly elected President of the United States is not what the Malaysians think it is.

What is Asia Confidential

Chomsky on 911

Must Read

More news items here

Nato dilemma deepens

CIA death squads

US failure in Ossetia

Who Is Section

Its the war, stupids

The Amazing Haj

Singapore Hospital sex trysts

Editorial

poetry

Without Prejudice

Frontline Pakistan

Columnists

Login Form

Partners

Darussalam Islamic Links Directory

Makkah

Attacks on Islam

Israel's Nuke Program

Tonkin Incident

Banned

Holocaust

Research Centre

mawar

lady

KL Outpost

Cain's Apple

Mindanao

Featured Article

From Hamas to Kenya, roughing up democracy

The American constitution, the basis of democracy in the USA is indeed a good example of how a democratic system can be hijacked by a group of people with an evil agenda. Democracy is violated in Kenya too where Kenya's opposition movement, which is challenging the election in December that Kenya's president, Mwai Kibaki, narrowly won. In Palestine, the legitimate government is now being suffocated...What democracy is it?