Israel was also heavily criticised for its assault on the Mavi Marmara taking toys to Gaza. Israel investigated itself and produced a whitewash more brilliant than the Warren Commission.
A few days ago, exactly when the Mavi Marmara whitewash was published, some documents were leaked to al Jazeera which made some astonishing allegations about the Palestinian Authority. Palestine has since erupted into violent protest. But who or what is the target of that protest?
But what has been the effect of these leaks on the Middle East process? US State Department spokesman Philip Crowley said
We don't deny that this release will, at least for a time, make the situation more difficult than it already was
[source : US says Palestinian leaks make a deal 'more difficult', BBC, 25/01/2011]
In other words, the leaks have not aided the process. They have instead assassinated it!
The leaks, if genuine, show that the PA was going way beyond that extra mile to achieve some sort of agreement, but they were being immediately rejected by Israel.
And it was Israel who started to build settlements when they knew it would plunge the peace talks into crisis.
In a comment in The Guardian today, the Hamas international relations chief Osama Hamdan goes into detail about the implications of the leaks for the peace talks.
It is unthinkable that the Palestinian people will ever approve any deal concluded with the Israelis by this team of negotiators, for they will always be suspected of selling out and of betraying the cause.
[source : The Palestinian cause has been betrayed. But no more, The Guardian, 26/01/2001]
As a British citizen I am shocked but not surprised about the involvement of MI6 in controlling Gaza through the PA and Israel.
These leaks have killed the peace talks, if they had any life left in them after Israel ran a bulldozer over them by allowing the building of settlements.
So who would benefit from the assassination of the Middle East process?
Who has shown a desire for the Middle East process to die?
And the result of these leaks support the bold statement in the Economist at the New Year, which warned of a very big Middle East war this year.
NO WAR, no peace, is the usual state of affairs between Israel and its neighbours in the Middle East. But every time an attempt at Arab-Israeli peacemaking fails, as Barack Obama’s did shortly before Christmas, the peace becomes a little more fragile and the danger of war increases. Sadly, there is reason to believe that unless remedial action is taken, 2011 might see the most destructive such war for many years.
[source : Please, not again, The Economist, 29/12/2010]
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