The architects of the "road map" to Middle East peace encouraged Israel to fully withdraw from Gaza, which they said would provide "a rare moment of opportunity" to put the stalled Israeli-Palestinian peace process back on track.
The US, the UN, the EU and Russia stressed, however, that any "unilateral initiatives" by Israel should be consistent with the road map and declared that final-status issues such as refugees and borders must be negotiated between the Israelis and Palestinians.
Top officials of the so-called Quartet, meeting on Tuesday for the first time since last September, clearly saw Israeli Prime Minister Ariel Sharon's intention to pull out of Gaza and parts of the West Bank as the only real prospect for movement. But with Sharon's intentions following his Likud Party's refusal to back the Gaza pullout now less certain, the Quartet also held back from spelling out detailed plans.
As Israel withdraws, it said land should be transferred "through an appropriate mechanism to a reorganized Palestinian Authority ... as quickly as possible," and it said arrangements should be made to ensure security for both Israelis and Palestinians.
When asked for specifics, UN Secretary-General Kofi Annan, who hosted the meeting, said: "We are waiting to see how things evolve, and then adapt our plans or mechanisms accordingly."
The Quartet issued a three-page communique after the meeting outlining a series of obstacles to achieving the road map's goal of two states, Israel and Palestine, living side-by-side in peace: violence, terrorism, Israeli settlements, the barrier Israel is building and the Palestinian leadership.
The Palestinian UN observer, Nasser Al-Kidwa, complained that the US dominated the meeting and the final communique amounted to nothing more than "mumbling that could mean anything."
He was especially critical that the Quartet didn't call for a complete withdrawal from the West Bank and take a stronger stand against the barrier, which Israel contends is to keep out suicide bombers but which the Palestinians insist is a land grab ahead of final status negotiations.
By contrast, Daniel Ayalon, the Israeli ambassador to Washington, said the Quartet had focused on "the real problem" of terrorism and a need for change within the Palestinian movement.
"Cracking down on terrorism and reforms are imperative for any meaningful political dialogue," he said.
Reviving that dialogue remains a critical issue for the Quartet.
Tuesday's meeting took place not only against a backdrop of ongoing Israeli-Palestinian violence but of growing Arab anger at US President George W. Bush's assurances to Sharon last month that Israel could retain some Jewish settlements on the West Bank and limit refugee returns in a final peace deal.
The Palestinians and many Arabs saw this as a unilateral US decision.
Trying to look forward, US Secretary of State Colin Powell said Sharon's intention to withdraw from Gaza offered an opportunity that didn't exist a few weeks ago.
"If we seize this opportunity and work with the parties, we'll get back onto the road map," he said.
Indonesia yesterday began enforcing its newly ratified penal code, replacing a Dutch-era criminal law that had governed the country for more than 80 years and marking a major shift in its legal landscape. Since proclaiming independence in 1945, the Southeast Asian country had continued to operate under a colonial framework widely criticized as outdated and misaligned with Indonesia’s social values. Efforts to revise the code stalled for decades as lawmakers debated how to balance human rights, religious norms and local traditions in the world’s most populous Muslim-majority nation. The 345-page Indonesian Penal Code, known as the KUHP, was passed in 2022. It
‘DISRESPECTFUL’: Katie Miller, the wife of Trump’s most influential adviser, drew ire by posting an image of Greenland in the colors of the US flag, captioning it ‘SOON’ US President Donald Trump on Sunday doubled down on his claim that Greenland should become part of the US, despite calls by the Danish prime minister to stop “threatening” the territory. Washington’s military intervention in Venezuela has reignited fears for Greenland, which Trump has repeatedly said he wants to annex, given its strategic location in the arctic. While aboard Air Force One en route to Washington, Trump reiterated the goal. “We need Greenland from the standpoint of national security, and Denmark is not going to be able to do it,” he said in response to a reporter’s question. “We’ll worry about Greenland in
PERILOUS JOURNEY: Over just a matter of days last month, about 1,600 Afghans who were at risk of perishing due to the cold weather were rescued in the mountains Habibullah set off from his home in western Afghanistan determined to find work in Iran, only for the 15-year-old to freeze to death while walking across the mountainous frontier. “He was forced to go, to bring food for the family,” his mother, Mah Jan, said at her mud home in Ghunjan village. “We have no food to eat, we have no clothes to wear. The house in which I live has no electricity, no water. I have no proper window, nothing to burn for heating,” she added, clutching a photograph of her son. Habibullah was one of at least 18 migrants who died
Russia early yesterday bombarded Ukraine, killing two people in the Kyiv region, authorities said on the eve of a diplomatic summit in France. A nationwide siren was issued just after midnight, while Ukraine’s military said air defenses were operating in several places. In the capital, a private medical facility caught fire as a result of the Russian strikes, killing one person and wounding three others, the State Emergency Service of Kyiv said. It released images of rescuers removing people on stretchers from a gutted building. Another pre-dawn attack on the neighboring city of Fastiv killed one man in his 70s, Kyiv Governor Mykola
RSS