Post by Teddy Bear on Dec 8, 2010 16:27:29 GMT
Even if you knew nothing else about the facts of this particular aspect of the ongoing conflict between Israel and Palestine, and were just applying logic and common sense to what is revealed in the article below, how would you present it?
The first paragraph tells you The United States is abandoning efforts to persuade Israel to renew a freeze on settlement-building as part of efforts to revive Middle East peace talks.
This theme is repeated in various forms further on, so it would appear that because of Israel's intransigence on this issue, 'peace talks' are unable to continue, although we do see that The Palestinians suspended talks in September after a 10-month freeze on Israeli building in the West Bank, excluding East Jerusalem, expired.
So they had their 10 months of 'freeze' to conduct peace talks, why wasn't peace achieved in that time? But it clearly shows that Israel DID do something, that according to the Palestinians was an essential part of their preconditions for peace, what else is missing - assuming peace is what they want?
Only after we get through the The Palestinians have said previously they will not return to the negotiating table while settlement building continues. repeated throughout the article and get near the very bottom do we see
I know I already covered the fact that the BBC were choosing to ignore the genuine Palestinian stance on how they see their future, and here they near enough bury the mention that the Palestinians do not want to recognize Israel as a Jewish state - surely an essential element to achieve peace. The BBC loves to use the now predominantly Muslim controlled UN condemnation of Israel as it arises, but it was the same UN that originally established Israel as a Jewish state.
Within our own society we see an ever more vocal extremist Muslim section desiring Sharia rule imposed upon us. At every turn we see issues arising that we have to give way to not offending Muslim sensibilities, even if we have to sacrifice our own traditions and 'rights' within a Christian based culture. Imagine if we were in a similar situation to Israel where Muslim extremists were holding us in a perpetual state of conflict because we didn't want to completely give away our own identity. They would keep maintaining demands for what we need to do for them to be peaceful, and unless we gave into it, we would be at fault - that is - if the BBC were reporting it.
Any argument that the BBC is not our 'ENEMY WITHIN'!
The first paragraph tells you The United States is abandoning efforts to persuade Israel to renew a freeze on settlement-building as part of efforts to revive Middle East peace talks.
This theme is repeated in various forms further on, so it would appear that because of Israel's intransigence on this issue, 'peace talks' are unable to continue, although we do see that The Palestinians suspended talks in September after a 10-month freeze on Israeli building in the West Bank, excluding East Jerusalem, expired.
So they had their 10 months of 'freeze' to conduct peace talks, why wasn't peace achieved in that time? But it clearly shows that Israel DID do something, that according to the Palestinians was an essential part of their preconditions for peace, what else is missing - assuming peace is what they want?
Only after we get through the The Palestinians have said previously they will not return to the negotiating table while settlement building continues. repeated throughout the article and get near the very bottom do we see
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu offered to renew the freeze if the Palestinians recognised Israel as a Jewish state, but the Palestinian Authority dismissed the idea.
I know I already covered the fact that the BBC were choosing to ignore the genuine Palestinian stance on how they see their future, and here they near enough bury the mention that the Palestinians do not want to recognize Israel as a Jewish state - surely an essential element to achieve peace. The BBC loves to use the now predominantly Muslim controlled UN condemnation of Israel as it arises, but it was the same UN that originally established Israel as a Jewish state.
Within our own society we see an ever more vocal extremist Muslim section desiring Sharia rule imposed upon us. At every turn we see issues arising that we have to give way to not offending Muslim sensibilities, even if we have to sacrifice our own traditions and 'rights' within a Christian based culture. Imagine if we were in a similar situation to Israel where Muslim extremists were holding us in a perpetual state of conflict because we didn't want to completely give away our own identity. They would keep maintaining demands for what we need to do for them to be peaceful, and unless we gave into it, we would be at fault - that is - if the BBC were reporting it.
Any argument that the BBC is not our 'ENEMY WITHIN'!
US scraps demand for Israel settlements freeze
The United States is abandoning efforts to persuade Israel to renew a freeze on settlement-building as part of efforts to revive Middle East peace talks.
Washington had been negotiating with Israel to try to meet Palestinian conditions for restarting direct talks.
The Palestinians suspended talks in September after a 10-month freeze on Israeli building in the West Bank, excluding East Jerusalem, expired.
The US says it will continue to explore ways to bring the two sides together.
A senior US official told the BBC that attempts to get Israel to renew a partial freeze on settlement construction in occupied territory had failed.
But he said this did not mean the end of Washington's efforts.
The peace talks resumed in September after a break of almost two years but were suspended almost immediately when Israel decided not to extend the ban on settlement building in the West Bank.
Incentives offered
Israeli defence minister Ehud Barak said talks with the Americans had been postponed because Washington was distracted by the fallout from the release of secret documents by the whistle-blowing website Wikileaks and the crisis over North Korea.
But state department spokesman PJ Crowley denied this was the case.
"There is not a change in strategy, there may well be a change in tactics," he said.
"We have been pursuing a moratorium as a means to create conditions for a return to meaningful and sustained negotiations. After a considerable effort, we have concluded that this does not create a firm basis to work towards our shared goal of a framework agreement.
"We will have further conversations on the substance with the parties, and we will continue to try to find ways to create the kind of confidence that will eventually, we hope, allow them to engage directly."
A spokesman for Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas said he was studying the US decision before responding.
But Maen Rashid Areikat, the Palestine Liberation Organisation's chief representative to the US, told the BBC's World Today programme that Israel should be made to comply with international law over the issue of settlement building.
"We will not tolerate the continuation of Israeli settlements in the Palestinian occupied territories," he said.
"I don't think that there will be a change of Palestinian position in the near future."
The Palestinians have said previously they will not return to the negotiating table while settlement building continues.
Last month, the Obama administration offered Israel a sizeable package of incentives, including jet fighters and security guarantees, in return for a 90-day extension of the previous moratorium.
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu offered to renew the freeze if the Palestinians recognised Israel as a Jewish state, but the Palestinian Authority dismissed the idea.
It is unclear how the US is planning to proceed, says the BBC's Kim Ghattas at the state department in Washington.
Palestinian and Israeli negotiators will be in Washington next week and Secretary of State Hillary Clinton will make a speech about the Middle East on Friday.
The fact that the Palestinians are coming means they accept that calling for a freeze first is not working, our correspondent says.
Israel has occupied the West Bank, including East Jerusalem, since 1967, settling close to 500,000 Jews in more than 100 settlements. They are considered illegal under international law, although Israel disputes this.
There are about 2.5 million Palestinians living in the West Bank.
The United States is abandoning efforts to persuade Israel to renew a freeze on settlement-building as part of efforts to revive Middle East peace talks.
Washington had been negotiating with Israel to try to meet Palestinian conditions for restarting direct talks.
The Palestinians suspended talks in September after a 10-month freeze on Israeli building in the West Bank, excluding East Jerusalem, expired.
The US says it will continue to explore ways to bring the two sides together.
A senior US official told the BBC that attempts to get Israel to renew a partial freeze on settlement construction in occupied territory had failed.
But he said this did not mean the end of Washington's efforts.
The peace talks resumed in September after a break of almost two years but were suspended almost immediately when Israel decided not to extend the ban on settlement building in the West Bank.
Incentives offered
Israeli defence minister Ehud Barak said talks with the Americans had been postponed because Washington was distracted by the fallout from the release of secret documents by the whistle-blowing website Wikileaks and the crisis over North Korea.
But state department spokesman PJ Crowley denied this was the case.
"There is not a change in strategy, there may well be a change in tactics," he said.
"We have been pursuing a moratorium as a means to create conditions for a return to meaningful and sustained negotiations. After a considerable effort, we have concluded that this does not create a firm basis to work towards our shared goal of a framework agreement.
"We will have further conversations on the substance with the parties, and we will continue to try to find ways to create the kind of confidence that will eventually, we hope, allow them to engage directly."
A spokesman for Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas said he was studying the US decision before responding.
But Maen Rashid Areikat, the Palestine Liberation Organisation's chief representative to the US, told the BBC's World Today programme that Israel should be made to comply with international law over the issue of settlement building.
"We will not tolerate the continuation of Israeli settlements in the Palestinian occupied territories," he said.
"I don't think that there will be a change of Palestinian position in the near future."
The Palestinians have said previously they will not return to the negotiating table while settlement building continues.
Last month, the Obama administration offered Israel a sizeable package of incentives, including jet fighters and security guarantees, in return for a 90-day extension of the previous moratorium.
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu offered to renew the freeze if the Palestinians recognised Israel as a Jewish state, but the Palestinian Authority dismissed the idea.
It is unclear how the US is planning to proceed, says the BBC's Kim Ghattas at the state department in Washington.
Palestinian and Israeli negotiators will be in Washington next week and Secretary of State Hillary Clinton will make a speech about the Middle East on Friday.
The fact that the Palestinians are coming means they accept that calling for a freeze first is not working, our correspondent says.
Israel has occupied the West Bank, including East Jerusalem, since 1967, settling close to 500,000 Jews in more than 100 settlements. They are considered illegal under international law, although Israel disputes this.
There are about 2.5 million Palestinians living in the West Bank.