Erekat: "The Israelis are Determined to Destroy the Negotiations"
- Details
- Published on Monday, 30 December 2013 09:56
PNN
In an interview with Euronews, Palestinian Chief Negotiator Saeb Erekat argues that the Israelis is “determined to destroy the (ongoing peace) negotiations."
In the interview Erekat said, “I can’t say there have been any real results because of Israeli behaviour away from the negotiating table since the beginning of negotiations again on 29 July. This resulted in the killing of 31 Palestinians in cold blood, in addition to the Israelis introducing tenders for the construction of 5,992 housing units – which is equivalent to three times normal growth in New York City! Moreover, 209 houses and other Palestinian constructions were destroyed, and there were attacks on the al-Aqsa mosque, plus a rising of terrorist actions by the settlers by 41 percent and a tightening of the siege on the Gaza strip,” Euronews reports.
When asked about the disagreement points between the Palestinian and the Israeli side, Erekat answered, “I can’t go deeply into the details of negotiations, but what must be constructed under the legitimacy of international law is clear and specific. A Palestinian state has no meaning without announcing East Jerusalem as its capital, and there is no Palestine without the Gaza strip as a part of it. Gaza means the Mediterranean and total incorporation. We are the same people. We cannot end this struggle without finding a solution for the refugee issue, referring to UN resolution 194.”
“The Israeli government bears responsibility for the settlements. The Israeli prime minister has already chosen settlements rather than negotiation. He chose to dictate rather than pursue the peace process. Therefore, the Israeli government bears all the responsibility for this crisis in negotiations.”
“Today, Palestine could have membership in 63 organisations and protocols with international charters, including the four Geneva conventions, Vienna and the International Criminal Court. Everybody who is afraid of the international courts must stop their crimes. We are building strong relations with the European Union in order to dry swamp settlements, and we are also building relations with Latin America. We are seeking to get the highest possible number of countries to recognise the Palestinian state, especially within the European Union. But Benjamin Netanyahu has a strategy also based on three foundations: he needs a Palestinian authority without power, and he needs an Israeli occupation without cost, and he is trying to move the Gaza Strip away from the Palestinian space. So, to break his strategy we need to rechannel Palestinian efforts, because we must help each other in this issue. Netanyahu must be aware that we are going to ask for membership in all the 63 international organisations including the International Criminal Court.”
He then went on to elaborate on the reasons as to why it is not possible to admit Israel as a Jewish state where he stated: “This makes us admit that this land is a Jewish land, and I will not accept that at all. I will not change my religion, history and my culture. Political circumstances and international law say that there are two countries on the borders of 1967, and we accept that, but we will not accept Israel as a Jewish state under any circumstance.”
On the issue of Israeli troops on the borders of a future Palestinian state, which has been a big issue during the talks, Erekat argued that no Israeli troops would be accepted on the borders of a future sovereign state of Palestine. He is however postive towards having international troops on the borders, whilst the Israelis is against such a solution.
UN has continually condemned the demolition of Palestinian homes by the Israeli.
