PM: Palestinian unity government would kill off the peace process

[oberliner]

Israel is urging the United States and key European governments to press Palestinian Authority President Mahmoud Abbas not to establish a unity government with Hamas.

Abbas has called for new Palestinian elections within six months, but says they cannot be held unless Gaza Strip residents participate. And Hamas refuses to hold elections in Gaza unless there is a reconciliation deal.

In an interview with CNN yesterday, Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu strenuously opposed the unity government idea, which he said would preclude any progress in the peace process.

http://www.haaretz.com/print-edition/news/pm-palestinian-unity-government-would-kill-off-the-peace-process-1.349890

[azurnoir]

1. well color me surprised

that could at least in part explain the "dog and pony show" yesterday over the Hamas weapon shipment.However the Palestinian people seem to have different ideas

Hamas, Fatah make overtures under pressure

This week's huge unity protests may have forced Hamas and Fatah into making a show of patching up their differences, but analysts are cynical about the rivals' sincerity.

Earlier this week, Palestinian president Mahmud Abbas said he was ready to go to Gaza "in the next few days" to put an end to years of hostilities between the Islamist Hamas movement and their secular Fatah rivals, so the two factions could "turn the page on this black and shameful division."

His remarks were welcomed by Hamas, and appeared to set the stage for a rare meeting between Abbas and the Islamist prime minister Ismail Haniya in the movement's Gaza stronghold.

The exchange of platitudes came about after tens of thousands of young Palestinians took to the streets of the West Bank and Gaza to demand that the two factions end nearly two decades of bitter rivalry which has badly damaged their national movement.

http://www.maannews.net/eng/ViewDetails.aspx?ID=369833

[oberliner]

2. Hamas is afraid of elections because they will be voted out

Hopefully Abbas can stand firm and get a commitment that elections will move forward.

[azurnoir]

5. the title of the linked article-Hamas, Fatah make overtures under pressure

and it is indeed "under pressure" IMO neither Abbas or Haniyeh is particularly anxious to have elections or for 'unity', however the people of Gaza and the Palestinians on the West Bank as noted feel quite differently and have been demonstrating for a few days now

[oberliner]

6. Photos by OneVoice Palestine activists attending West Bank unity rallies

New York, March 15, 2011—OneVoice Palestinian activists participated in massive West Bank unity rallies on Tuesday, demanding reconciliation between bitter rivals Fatah and Hamas as the first necessary step toward ending the occupation and resolving the Israeli-Palestinian conflict.

Following demonstrations that began in Gaza on Monday, thousands gathered today in the West Bank cities of Bethlehem, Nablus, and Ramallah for peaceful unity rallies organized by Palestinian youth groups on simple pages of the social networking site Facebook. OneVoice Palestinian activists have been taking photographs throughout the day and tweeting on the rallies. Visit OneVoice’s blog to view the movement’s real-time Twitter stream.

http://blog.onevoicemovement.org/

[provis99]

3. there's already no peace process.

So what difference would it make?

[bemildred]

4. Nobody move, or the bunny gets it!