Sharm Al Sheik

A tight working schedule coupled with travel arrangements has left me little time to blog of late, but here is a short summary of the Sharm-Al-Sheik summit that took place in Egypt yesterday.

You should note that one of the major changes in the region in Hosni Mubarak's willingness to get intimately involved and host such a summit. This post will explain why this is worth noting: When Arafat burned Mubarak

Mahmoud Abbas and Ariel Sharon declared an effective cease-fire in Sharm el-Sheik Tuesday. Sharon said he and Abbas "agreed that all Palestinians will stop all acts of violence against all Israelis everywhere, and in parallel, Israel will cease all its military activity against all Palestinians everywhere." Abbas said, "A new opportunity for peace is born today....The calm which will prevail in our lands starting from today is the beginning of a new era."

"We expect a declaration on the Palestinian side on the cessation of armed conflict, the intifada," said Raanan Gissin, Sharon's spokesman. "Israel will also make a unilateral declaration that says if the Palestinians cease fire, we will refrain from military activity." Gissin cautioned that in the past four years, 10 announcements of cease-fires had been followed by a resumption of violence, but added that the new announcement "has a greater chance of success than before" because of a new determination to cooperate after Arafat's death.

Also worth noting is the context in which Sharon mentioned the disengagement plan, which he is determined to implement. He reminded everyone that it was born unilaterally, but that if he is convinced that a real effort to end terror is taking place then the plan will be coordinated with the Palestinians.

Something I constantly harp on about is the need for both sides to concentrate on their absolute needs rather than their wants. Both sides will need to accept painful compromises and Israel is leading the way with the disengagement plan. On this issue Sharon addressed the both the Palestinians and the Israelis:

With your permission, I wish to address the citizens of both peoples: To our Palestinian neighbors, I assure you that we have a genuine intention to respect your right to live independently and in dignity. I have already said that Israel has no desire to continue to govern over you and control your fate. We in Israel have had to painfully wake up from our dreams, and we are determined to overcome all the obstacles which might stand in our path in order to realize the new chance which has been created. You too must prove that you have the strength and the courage to compromise, abandon unrealistic dreams, subdue the forces which oppose peace and live in peace and mutual respect side-by-side with us. To the citizens of Israel, I say: we have passed difficult years, faced the most painful experiences and overcame them. The future lies before us. We are required to take difficult and controversial steps, but we must not miss the opportunity to try to achieve what we have wished for, for so many years: security, tranquility and peace.

You can see the full text of Ariel Sharon's speech at this link.

Comments

[Jodi]

Israel is treading on this ice here. They need to make certain that the Palestinians dont see these agreements as temporary agreements.