Israeli Leaders 'Seriously Considering' Saudi Plan For Overall Peace Deal

JERUSALEM — Israeli leaders are seriously considering a dormant Saudi plan offering a comprehensive peace between Israel and the Arab world in exchange for lands captured during the 1967 war, Defense Minister Ehud Barak said Sunday.

Barak said it may be time to pursue an overall peace deal for the region because individual negotiations with Syria and the Palestinians have made little progress.

Barak said he has discussed the Saudi plan with Prime Minister-designate Tzipi Livni, who is in the process of forming a new government, and that Israel is considering a response. Barak, who leads the Labor party, is expected to play a senior role in the next government.

Livni's office refused to comment on her talks with Barak.

Saudi Arabia first proposed the peace initiative in 2002, offering pan-Arab recognition of Israel in exchange for Israel's withdrawal from Arab lands captured in 1967 _ the West Bank, Gaza Strip, east Jerusalem and the Golan Heights. The 22-member Arab League endorsed the plan last year.

Israel has said the plan is a good basis for discussion, but expressed some reservations.

"There is definitely room to introduce a comprehensive Israeli plan to counter the Saudi plan that would be the basis for a discussion on overall regional peace," Barak told Israel's Army Radio.

He noted the "deep, joint interest" with moderate Arab leaders in containing Iran's nuclear ambitions and limiting the influence of the radical Islamic Hezbollah movement in Lebanon and Hamas in Gaza.

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Analyst Ghassan Khatib, a former minister in the Palestinian Cabinet, said interest in the plan was "a little bit late" but welcome.

"I strongly believe that the Arab initiative is the best approach to peace between the Arabs and the Israelis," he said. "It fulfills all the legitimate objectives of Israel and those of the Palestinians and at the same time it has this regional dimension and it reflects one of the rare issues on which Arabs have consensus."

While Israel's outgoing prime minister, Ehud Olmert, has welcomed the Saudi plan, he and other leaders want to keep small parts of the territories captured in 1967. Israel also objects to language that appears to endorse a large-scale return of Palestinian refugees to lands inside Israel. Israel says a massive influx of Palestinians would destroy the country's Jewish character.

Yuval Steinitz, an Israeli lawmaker from the conservative opposition Likud Party and a member of parliament's Foreign Affairs and Defense Committee, said that for Israel, the Saudi plan is a nonstarter and called Barak's remarks "an empty political gesture."

"It doesn't recognize Israel's right to defensible borders ... (and) demands Palestinian refugees settle in the Jewish state as well as the Palestinian state, which is totally unacceptable," he said.

Israel's ceremonial president, Shimon Peres, proposed putting Israel's various peace talks on one track last month at the United Nations, calling on Saudi King Abdullah to "further his initiative." He has since been pushing the idea in meetings with Israeli, Arab and Western officials, his office said.

While Peres has no formal role in Israeli foreign policy, he is a Nobel peace laureate and well respected in the international community.

In Sunday's interview, Barak said he was in full agreement with Peres.

"I had the impression that there is indeed an openness to explore any path, including this one," he said of his talks with Livni.

Palestinian negotiator Saeb Erekat noted that pursuing the Saudi peace initiative did not necessarily undermine the direct talks between Israel and the Palestinians and he encouraged Israel to pursue this track.

"I think Israel should have done this since 2002. It is the most strategic initiative that came from the Arab world since 1948," he said. "I urge them to revisit this initiative and to go with it because it will shorten the way to peace."

Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas said Sunday that he would meet with Olmert on Oct. 27. The two leaders have been meeting regularly this year, to assess progress in peace talks.

Comments

[PT6]

We are TIRED OF PRE-CONDITIONS to TALKING!

Who invented this silly idea that talking to someone is giving them POWER!

This is ANOTHER INVENTION OF THE BUSH ADMINISTRATION to prevent negotiations and INCREASE THE NEED FOR WARS!

It has ALSO permeated THE McCain Campaign regarding Ayers and Pakistan!

If we are unwilling to talk we can never SOLVE PROBLEMS!

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
I THINK WE ARE IN AN ERA WHEN PEACE WILL BREAK OUT ALLOVER!

We need to begin talking SOON!

Is THIS the OBAMA EFFECT!

[MagisterLudi]

Oh, how one wishes sometimes to escape from the meaningless dullness of human eloquence, from all those sublime phrases, to take refuge in nature, apparently so inarticulate, or in the wordlessness of long grinding labor, of sound sleep, of true music...
Boris Pasternak.

[Kirby]

One is given to wonder if there is really any point to the talking, if underlying all the desire for peace, there is the assumption that East Jerusalem will become permanently a part of Israel. This is indeed a precondition, and renders pointless the talks to be entered into. The United States was a signatory to certain UN Resolutions, and we should adhere to these as points around which a solid, comprehensive peace can be established. Israel continues to play games concerning a final settlement, and it is time for some one with gumption sufficient to stand up for overall justice, and to ignore extreme claims of security needs to not follow the UN Resolutions.

[SD leaker]

Time and justice is in the side of the Palestinians. There is no solution without recognizing the inalienable right of the Palestinians to return to their 1948 homes and land. All the area is Palestine (former Palestinian Mandate) anyway. Therefore Palestinians have no choice but to keep fighting for their land against the massive weapons sent by the USA to Israel.

[MagisterLudi]

no choice but to keep fighting...
And Israel will have no choice but keep on beating them.

P.S. I noticed YOU'RE not fighting anyone but only talking from a safe Western location.

[devinkay]

How long do you think the Cherokee Nation would last as an independent state if it were suddenly shoehorned into its original lands between Tennessee, Georgia and Alabama? That's effectively what the UN injunction of 1947 did when it partitioned Palestine. Israel's annexation of additional land by force served to exacerbate an already untenable arrangement, and their unjust if not illegal settlements erected on that usurped land have proven, not unexpectedly, to be sparks in a powder keg.

The best hope for peace lies with Israel's exercising a modicum of humility by first recognizing its great good fortune in having been given a place to exist at all, and then in its willingness to negotiate by offering to return unconditionally to its pre-war borders. Until then it will remain just a U.S-protected schoolyard bully and sand in the oyster of the Middle East.

The alternative is to continue to try to hold by strong-arm force an island of arrogance in a sea of resentment.

[MagisterLudi]

1,. The MAJORITY of the land taken were Arab lands annexed by Arab Jordan and Arab lands in Gaza annexed by Egypt.
2. There was NEVER a country of Palestine. The land wasn't theirs. It was land owned by Ottman Empire and later part of British Empire. Brits did what they wanted with the land. 3.YOu don'ty seem upset that Middle East was partitioned into Jordan, Syria, Iraq, Egypt etcYour blind anger is only focused on a tiny sliver of land during this wholesale partition that Jews got. Guess what, the fast you people learn to accept it the fast the peace will come.
4. Here's a irony. The ONLY reason Palestinians still have chance for some independence is because. Israel took back West Bank and Jerusalem from Jordan. Jordan gave up their claim to West Bank ONLY AFTER it was no longer theirs.
I know, I know, this is too much complex reality...

[SD leaker]

Palestinian land was returned to the Palestinians by Jordan. After British decolonization Palestine was called Palestinian Mandate. There was no Israel whatsoever. It was and it is Palestine.

[SD leaker]

There is no solution without the inalienable right of the Palestinians to return to their 1948 homes and land. All the area is Palestine (former Palestinian Mandate) anyway. Therefore Palestinians have no choice but to keep fighting for their land against the massive weapons sent by the USA to Israel.

[max]

Peace is certainly in the interest of our country the USA

[SD leaker]

By the USA, uninterruptedly giving weapons to Israel for 60 years, It doesn't seem the US has any interest for peace.

[MagisterLudi]

Not 60 years. Israel fought 6-Day War WITHOUT any US weapons. Most weapons were bought from Soviet Union ( Czechs) and France. France was especially strong supporter of Israel. US chose Israel as ally ONLY when Egypt, Syria, Iraq and other Arabs joined Soviet camp. Learn history.

[itchcity]

Destroy the wall

[SD leaker]

Tear down the wall! One state solution is the only viable solution.

[MagisterLudi]

"One state solution is the only viable solution."
I agree. It i It is called the State of Israel. Anyone who want to become an Israeli citizen is welcome. They can study Jewish Torah and convert to Judaism. Isn't this ONLY way for a Jew to become citizens of Saudi Arabia, Kuwait, Syria, Oman, Jordan, Lebanon, Iran, Morocco, Libya, Egypt etc. Here you go.

[itchcity]

Maybe if they stopped their callous racist apartheid policies they wouldn't be having so many problems

[SD leaker]

Yes. They are callous racists applying their apartheid policies. Tear down the wall! One state solution is the only viable solution.

[nancytheragingliberal]

They all have the same blood, for goodness sake. Come on all of you, including Israel. Give peace a chance. Stop blowing each other up, as you have been doing for thousands of years, embrace, and live free from fear.

[chaos4700]

I'm compelled to point out that most Jewish Israelis are, in fact, of European and Russian descent and that the fighting going in Israel/Palestine has really only been going on since the 1940's when Jewish terrorists began an assault on the British Mandate.

The finer points aside, I agree with you. We are all human beings, dammit! It's about time we all start acting like grownups already. ;)

[ZenJu]

That is incorrect. While many Jews did indeed migrate home from Eastern Europe to the land of Israel, we belong in the Middle East, bearing genetic markers that show that we are related to the Arabs. Our language, Hebrew, is a Semitic language related to Arabic. The fighting started with the rise of Arab nationalisim in the early 20th century, egged on by the British to keep Arabs and Jews divided. Haj Amin al-Husseini, Grand Mufti of Jerusalem, was a Hitler stooge who whipped up riots in the 30s against Jews. Jewish "terrorists," as you call them (I assume you refer to the Irgun and the Stern Gang) primarily targeted British military positions, NOT civilian ones. I could go on but there are excellent histories for you to read.
I agree with your bottom line though: We are all HUMAN. Let's start working together. Arabs and Jews are cousins, and Israel has always been ready to extend true friendship and cooperation to a peaceful Arab world that will recognize our right to live at home in safety. When the "Palestinians" are ready for a real peace, there WILL be real peace and we can join in partnership.

[MagisterLudi]

"I'm compelled to point out that most Jewish Israelis are, in fact, of European and Russian descent"

WRONG!

Demographics. Israel national population.

Non-white Arab and Iberian Jews= 38%
European Jews=37%
African Jews=2%
Indian Jews=1%
Arabs=20%

[SD leaker]

Palestinian refugees have an unalienable right to return to their 1948 homes and their land. The UN had no right to steal Palestine from the Palestinians in 1948. The US has given weapons to the israelis during 60 years. What do you think the Palestinians should do? Wait and see in the refugee camps forever? Is that what you would do if the USA was stolen by the UN in 1948 to give it to other people. Wouldn't you defend your country?

[IssyWise]

I'm not sure it is an optimistic development that this Israeli politician has concluded direct talks with the immediate Arab actors is a dead end so focus should shift to a broader Arab community that has put forward a plan that must have known was fundamentally unacceptable to the Israelies--no defensible borders and open their doors to unlimited Palestinian immigration, thereby further compounding Israel's internal dilemma: it is a democracy or a theocracy created directly by God's will.

While the Arabs may not consider democracy an important equity, Israel must if its finer aspirations are to be realized.

All in all, this looks like some rather cynical posturing by Israeli politicians bent on diverting attention to the continued colonization of West Bank land.

[fussygorilla]

0 comments pending? Where is mine posted 2 hours ago?

[SD leaker]

Guess who controls the mainstream media in the USA.

[MagisterLudi]

Here's simple solution for your children if you want to "control some part of the mainstream media."
Make your children study very hard. Get into a top rank university. Study hard. Graduate with honors. Start writing for some little county paper. Work your way up to become a great journalist. Earn respect of your peers and readers. Then begin "controlling" the media. Too hard?.... I figured s much.

[RaWash]

i'm not holding my breath..

[SD leaker]

You're right. The news is just an illusion. It's a fraud. Its going nowhere like the anti-Palestinian so called "Road Map"

[dashcat]

I sincerely hope they can make this work.

[SD leaker]

To make this work you have to do justice to 60 years of Palestinian suffering, and respect their inalienable right to return to their 1948 homes and land. All US governments have opposed that. And the current Obama/McCain campaigns opposes justice and Palestinians rights. I frankly see no reason for the slightest hope. Unfortunately, it is hope based on thin air.

[Judyisacutie]

I hope everybody will sign it before the ink dries up. How often is it that they all agree on this issue? So please take advantage of this opportunity, folks.

[SD leaker]

Sign what? A piece of paper where it says that Palestinians have no right to return to their 1948 homes and land? It would be as useless as signing toilet paper.

[FCBarca]

Israel is holding onto a position that is not tenable...Peace requires right of return, end of the bantu stands & settlements and 1967 borders

[nypoet22]

it's a good idea in theory, but there are three main reasons why it probably won't work:

1. PRECONDITIONS - as bush has found out with iran, predefined requirements for a meeting discourage progress. likud would never come to the table, and hamas would plan bombings to sabotage the process.

2. BORDERS - the exact 67 borders are completely indefensible. something even the most moderate of israelis would never stand for is borders they don't feel they can defend.

3. DEPENDENCE - most of the arab states repress their own populations, and need the israeli scapegoat to keep people distracted. the palestinians, looked down upon from all sides, really need to do their own negotiation, lest outside influences interfere with their ability to win a favorable compromise.

[malshah]

Borders- were easily defended and expanded upon in 1967 and during the Yum Kippur Wars. This indefensible border argument is rubbish.

[nypoet22]

That the argument exists at all is in fact a product of the 1973 war. in the sneak-attack on yom kippur, israel suffered heavy losses in part due to the lack of borders they could easily defend. The attack initially succeeded because israel didn't have time to mobilize, in part due to the topography of the land they defended. nearly 3000 dead soldiers are concrete evidence that defensible borders are not rubbish at all.

[SD leaker]

There are some much more important reasons than the ones you mentioned, namely the inalienable rights of the Palestinians to return to their 1948 homes and land. It takes a very good education brainwashed by US mainstream media to ignore it.

[nypoet22]

The vast majority of the refugees now known as palestinians left their homes voluntarily, assuming that they would return after all the jews had been driven out or killed. thus their diaspora, such as it is, was largely of their own making. Those arabs who chose to stay, as well as their descendants, are all currently israeli citizens. (http://www.jewishvirtuallibrary.org/jsource/myths2/Refugees.html#m1)

In a peaceful future compromise, hopefully there will be a confederation where citizens of both states can live in either territory and move freely between them. But first, let's see if we can get them all to stop shooting and bombing each other. Strong bargaining positions are one thing, but ultimatums on either side are highly counterproductive.

[DAE]

Interesting that there isn't much comment on the possible correlation with Obama's impending election. Maybe the Israeli's are beginning to see the handwriting on the wall.

[nypoet22]

doubtful. obama is very pro-israel, so about the only thing many of the arabs would like about him is his middle name.

[DAE]

He wants to get elected. Feint to the right, pivot to the left.

[Justtellthetruth]

Anyone who actually IS pro israel knows that all settlements and the occuaption must be removed completely. Obama, unlike the Bush administration, IS pro Israel, and therefore will help facilitate the will of the majority of Israeli people (as evidenced by the charter of the Kadima party to remove the settlements) and use the influence of the US to remove all settlements and the occuapation, effectively putting an end to one of the greatest catalysts of terrorism against both the US and Israel and thereby helping to finally bring about a successful end to this "war on terror".

[SD leaker]

Obama will never accept the right of the Palestinians to return to their 1948 homes and land. The DNC, RNC and MSM is controlled by AlPAC. Palestinians have no choice but to keep fighting alone for their rights.