TOI reports on the murderers release,
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The US negotiators reportedly urged Abbas to agree to extend peace negotiations beyond the April 29 deadline before the 30 prisoners are released. Netanyahu has insisted agreement be reached for extending the talks before the prisoners can go free, and has ruled out releasing Israeli Arab inmates
Nothing has happened since Kerry’s negotiations commenced save for the release of 78 murderers. The PA has not given an inch, nor will they if the talks are extended. So what’s the point?
Perhaps it is to do Obama a favour so that the Democrats will fare better in this years election. Or it is to eat up another 9 months for Obama’s term. Or it is to avoid the PA going to the UN.
None of these reasons justify it.
I am surprised and disappointed that the Government will hold if no Arab Israeli murderers are released and the talks are extended.
We should not allow ourselves to be blackmailed by the threat of the PA going to the UN for recognition..
If the PA were sure it would advance their cause, they would not have bargained away the right to go there even temporarily.
The sooner we bite the bullet of potential UN recognition of Palestine the better.
honeybee Said:
It’s been years since I had pumpkin pie and mince pie. Getting nostalgic of late. ?????
@ yamit82:
You are correct about Simon Schama! I bow to your superior knowledge! Anything I can do for you: CHOCOLATE CAKE!!!!!
Bennett: Release of 400 Palestinian prisoners for extended talks won’t happen
http://www.jpost.com/Breaking-News/Bennett-Release-of-400-Palestinian-for-extended-talks-will-not-happen-346881
Economy Minister Naftali Bennett rejected late Saturday reports that Israel was offering to release some 400 Palestinian prisoners as part of a framework for extending negotiations with the Palestinian Authority.
According to a report from the Walla! Hebrew-language news site, Israel and the United States allegedly proposed the mass release to the PA as a gesture for extending talks an addition six months following the April 29 deadline for the current round of diplomatic efforts.
Bennett said he had received hundred of inquires about the alleged report, to which he responded on his Facebook account that “It should be clear: It will not happen.
US officials: We can’t stop Palestinian UN statehood bid if talks fail
Washington demands flexibility of Israel, raising the possibility of another prisoner release of long-serving prisoners as a gesture to the Palestinians.
The United States cannot stop a Palestinian campaign to the United Nations for statehood should peace talks with Israel fail, American diplomats told The Washington Post on Saturday.
The Obama administration has been working to salvage the peace talks that have been tittering on the brink of collapse for weeks, after Israel refused to released the fourth and final group of Palestinian security prisoners on Saturday.
Palestinian Minister of Prisoner Affairs Issa Qaraqae told AFP that “today the prisoners will not be released… maybe in the coming days.”
“There are efforts to solve the crisis and I believe that in 24 hours everything will be clearer,” he added.
If negotiations continue, it is possible that the prisoner release will be postponed until the end of April.
Jibril Rajub, a member of Fatah’s central committee, told AFP Friday that “the Israeli government has informed us through the American mediator that it will not abide with its commitment to release the fourth batch of Palestinian prisoners scheduled for tomorrow.”
Israel can be flexible, be patient’
The Americans are demanding that Israel shows flexibility and have raised several options to do so, among them a “gesture” release of prisoners who have been imprisoned for a very long time, or those who are similar to other prisoners previously freed. At present, it is still unclear how many prisoners would be included in such a “gesture.”
Israel is examining the different options and Israeli officials said that “the Palestinians need to continue negotiations if they want a prisoners release. Israel is prepared to show certain flexibility to allow that to happen. We have to be patient and see where this goes.”
Israel has committed to releasing 104 Palestinian security prisoners who were jailed prior to the 1993 Oslo Accords. The names on the fourth group’s list are the hard core of prisoners, many of which were convicted of very serious crimes. Israel has previously cautioned that this release will not go ahead as planned if the Palestinians refuse to continue talks beyond the April 29 deadline.
OOOPS!!!!!
‘Israel offers to free 400 more prisoners if Abbas extends talks’
Palestinian sources disclose new proposal, which they say is backed by the US, to try to break peace talks impasse
http://www.timesofisrael.com/
Israel has offered to release a new group of 400 Palestinian security prisoners, in addition to the fourth and final group of longtime terrorism convicts who were set to go free this weekend, if the Palestinian Authority agrees to extend peace talks for another six months, The Times of Israel learned from Palestinian sources on Saturday night. The US, anxious to arrange for the continuation of the talks, backed the offer.
Under the new Israeli offer, Israel would determine which additional 400 security prisoners would go free, the sources said. Israel is said to be holding close to 5,000 Palestinian security prisoners.
Jewish Home’s Uri Ariel, the minister of housing and construction, was said to be ready to recommend that his right-wing party leave the coalition if the release of the extra prisoners goes through.
Meanwhile, US Special Envoy for Israeli-Palestinian Negotiations Martin Indyk met with chief Palestinian negotiator Saeb Erekat and Israel’s envoy to the peace talks, Yitzhak Molcho, in Jerusalem Saturday night. Erekat was quoted by Army Radio saying he believed the deadlock would be broken, and the fourth group of prisoners would go free early in the coming week.
Looks like BB is prepared to lose his coalition. For what? He might figure that new elections at this time are more to his advantage then waiting till after he makes bigger concessions.