US, Israel Close To Settlement Deal: Ehud Barak

Jerusalem Post:

Before heading back to Israel from New York following his meeting with US Mideast envoy George Mitchell, Defense Minister Ehud Barak said Wednesday morning that Israel was close to an understanding with the US on settlements, which he stressed were part of a regional comprehensive peace effort.

Read the whole story: Jerusalem Post

Comments

[ruth606]

[...long annoyed sigh]

Build all the kindergartens you want. In Israel. While we're on that subject, instead of worrying where to teach your future five year olds, why don't you worry about *what* you're teaching them? You know...the little things like maybe getting along with your neighbors and not taking things that don't belong to you. That would be a good start.

[LeeCalif]

Israel has blown everything.

http://informationclearinghouse.info/article22964.htm

[Altruth]

President Obama, cut the aid to israel if they don't stop building settlements!

[Taxi]

Mitchel is smiling ear to ear.

Barak ain't.

We are still insisting on settlement-freeze. We haven't buckled.

Never mind 'finessing'. Read our lips again, Israel:

NO MORE ILLEGAL EXPANSION/­OCCUPATION­!

We really mean it folks!

We've given the Izzies till the end of July before we start stirring their swamp.

Should be another fun month watching the aipac spin become more desperate.

... Culnimating in the toppling of Natanyahu.

Around Thanks Giving.

Turkey and mashed potatoes ooh yeah pass the gravy please :)

[RobRokoli]

I think past history on this issue tells us that "close" to agreement may be characterized and defined as asymptote. Don't hold your breath on this one. You'll turn blue.

[Samlas]

Does that mean we Americans can say we don't want our money to be sent to Isreal?

[davidwayneosedach]

What understanding? They're still building!

[DC]

There are too traps and political mines set to make this happen. As one Israeli so well articulates:

"On the one hand, the whole present discussion about recognizing Israel as a Jewish state is of clearly a ruse by Netanyahu to impose impossible conditions on the Palestinians; but on the other hand that condition has been accepted for all practical purposes by all the Arab states that have signed peace treaties with Israel, and of course also by the PLO leadership."

http://shraga-elam.blogspot.com/2009/06/some-thoughts-on-netanyahus-speech.html

[JerryLevy]

This "settlement" issue is purely a non-issue. If the Israelis thought they could remove the W. Bank settlements, share E. Jerusalem, give up the West Bank and get peace in return, they would do it tomorrow. But they know the two state solution is not ever going to be agreed to by the Palestinians. They have offered it over and over again, especially in 2000 at Camp David. Each time it is rejected without counter and ongoing violence and terrorism ensues from the Palestinians. The Palestinians are not willing to live by any of the Oslo accord agreements either. The real goal as stated succienctly by Hamas, Palestinian media, Palestinian government officials is the end of Israel, nothing else. It is couched in such euphamisms as "right of return" whereby they insist of over 4 million hostile Arabs be resettled into Israel proper.

[hrholmes]

only on land areas prior to 1967 that was stolen from them. nice try though.

[baffy]

A state means something autonomous, with self-determination, controlling it's own borders and airspace and with the capability of defending itself against aggressors like Israel. The Palestinians will trade peace for such a state and will even take in their refugees if compensated. The settlers, who have demonstrated their willingness to use violence to take over the entire West Bank and East Jerusalem must return to Israel i.e. not Judea and Samaria but the Israel that was mandated in 1948.

[JerryLevy]

Thanks for the honest reply, so many people say the Palestinians and their supporters are willing to live with a two state solution. You at least say that Israel must go back to the 1948 partition plan that was rejected by the Palestinians and the surrounding Arab countries back then. I wish more people would state honestly what they are for so the debate can be made on the actual Palestinian position. As for compensation, how would you compensate the equal number of Jewish refugees expelled to Israel from the surrounding Arab countries for no reason (without property).

[Tzippi]

Egypt gets around the same amount of funding from the US that Israel gets. What do they do that the US approves of? Torture people who don't agree with them, supress the press, unfair elections, etc but they still get the funds and don't care what the US says.

Why should it be different for Israel. Israel has to do what's best for Israel which is not necessarily best for the US or for Obama's world plan. He seems willing to sacrifice Israel in order to be friends with the Arabs. Not my idea of the way to go.

[fizzette]

"Israel has to do what's best for Israel..." and the U.S. needs to start doing what's best for the U.S., including joining with the rest of the civilized world in condemning Israel's abhorrent polices and actions.

[who38]

Hear, hear.

[baffy]

Egypt is not illegally occupying another people's land or trying to starve 1.5 million people into submission or dropping bombs on civilians.

[Bytown]

US remains silent over McKinney arrest by Israel

Nearly a day after the detention of former US lawmaker Cynthia McKinney by Israeli forces, Washington has yet to make a reaction.

Israeli Navy detained former US congresswoman and Nobel Prize laureate Cynthia McKinney and twenty other human rights activists on board a relief boat outside Israel’s territorial waters on Tuesday as they were heading to Gaza on a humanitarian mission.

Tel Aviv claims the boat was trying to break Israel’s two-year siege on Gaza.

Ms McKinney — the 2008 Green Party nominee for President of the United States– has accused Tel Aviv of violating the international law by seizing an aid vessel in international waters.

[myopinion2]

There is no basis or reason for the US to issue a statement. McKinney is a private citizen who engaged in an act of civil disobedience by attempting to run a military blockade,. She is being processed in a civil liberty manner, and will be put on a plane back to the US shortly.

[arle]

Really? So the US was wrong to issue statments about the private citizen of ours Iran was holding? Or the two private citizens in North Korea?

[Moshe]

Peace is the goal of all persons of good faith, regardless of their faith.

Our children need not continue to fight the battles of the past.

Shalom to all.

[myopinion2]

Amen

[Taxi]

What about atheists?

Or are you chopped liver to you?

[BackToFight]

Amen. I like your cat.

[SiberianRat]

There should be no "deal." The law is very clear--get back on your own side and quit stealing land. Since Israel wants us to butt out, I think we should butt ALL the way out--no more money, sever the absurd 1-way "alliance."

[whoa20]

The settlements are perfectly legal. The Oslo agreement doesn't even mention them. Its sad how Obama has fallen for the Palestinian game once again.

[arle]

Israel broke the Oslo arrangement too, so it's kind of irrelevant at this point.

[Taxi]

And when exactly did Obama FIRST sadly fall for the Palestinian game?

Please provide link.

Not hasbara.

[JDOK]

The new deal........Israel does what it wants and the US agrees to fund it.......oh wait, that's the old deal........sorry.