by Shlomo Cesana, Daniel Siryoti and Mati Tuchfeld
Cabinet likely to discuss renewal of peace talks with the Palestinians at its weekly meeting on Sunday • Senior Palestinian officials in Ramallah say upcoming talks in Washington will focus mainly on technical and procedural details, as well as timetable.
A release of Palestinian
prisoners in 2008
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Photo credit: Lior Mizrahi  |
One of the dilemmas facing Prime Minister
Benjamin Netanyahu and his cabinet members is where to release the 85
Palestinian terrorists who are to be freed as part of the renewal of
peace talks. Should they be allowed to return to their homes in Judea
and Samaria or should they be sent to the Gaza Strip?
The question for Netanyahu and his ministers
is whether pictures of released terrorists celebrating in Ramallah with
Palestinian Authority President Mahmoud Abbas will help or hurt peace
negotiations. Netanyahu viewed it gravely when Abbas took part in such
celebrations in the past.
Israel has deported terrorists with blood on
their hands to Gaza in the past (for example, in the Gilad Schalit
exchange deal), based on a two-fold concern -- the first being that the
released prisoners would return to terrorist activities and second being
that they would become icons for the young generation and thereby
encourage terrorism.
The 85 terrorists are expected to be freed in
four stages over the course of the upcoming negotiations, which will
last between nine months to one year. The first group of terrorists will
likely be released within the next four to six weeks.
Meanwhile, no date has yet been set for a
cabinet vote on approving the renewal of negotiations with the
Palestinians. The cabinet will also establish a ministerial team that
will discuss issues connected to the peace process, including the
release of Palestinian prisoners.
The Prime Minister's Office said the goal is
for the cabinet vote to be held before Israeli and Palestinian
negotiating teams meet in Washington. The U.S. has yet to announce a
date for the Washington talks and also hasn't said who will lead the
American team (reports that Martin Indyk had already been tapped for the
role were denied). Justice Minister Tzipi Livni and Netanyahu's special
envoy Yitzhak Molcho will lead the Israeli team and chief Palestinian
negotiator Saeb Erekat will head the Palestinian team.
If an earlier cabinet meeting is not set to
discuss the renewal of peace talks, the issue will be dealt with at the
weekly cabinet meeting on Sunday.
Senior Palestinian officials in Ramallah told
Israel Hayom that the upcoming talks in Washington will focus mainly on
technical and procedural issues related to the negotiations. The
timetable for the diplomatic process will also be discussed.
Meanwhile, the Land of Israel lobby convened an
emergency meeting at the Knesset on Tuesday. Rightist MKs called for
quickening the pace of construction in Judea and Samaria and expressed
opposition to the release of Palestinian prisoners. Coalition Chairman
MK Yariv Levin (Likud), one of the heads of the lobby, said, "Protecting
the settlements is the only way to ensure the security of Israel and
bring about peace and security."
Shlomo Cesana, Daniel Siryoti and Mati Tuchfeld
Source: http://www.israelhayom.com/site/newsletter_article.php?id=10909
Copyright - Original materials copyright (c) by the authors.
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