Israel must do more to pursue peace with the Palestinians and to strengthen their institutions or risk empowering militant groups such as Hamas, US Secretary of State Hillary Clinton said on Thursday.
US President Barack Obama’s efforts to revive peace talks have been stymied by a disagreement over Jewish settlement construction that has strained ties between Washington and its close ally Israel and by divisions among the Palestinians.
Obama has taken a much tougher line toward Israel than his recent predecessors, and on Tuesday he described solving the conflict as “a vital national security interest,” suggesting he may be willing to push hard for a solution.
While Clinton said in a speech to a pro-peace group that the Palestinians should also promote peace by ending incitement, curbing corruption and refraining from inflammatory rhetoric, she appeared to put more responsibility on Israel.
“For Israel, accepting concrete steps toward peace — both through the peace process and in the bottoms-up institution building I have described — are the best weapons against Hamas and other extremists,” Clinton said. “Those who benefit from our failure of leadership traffic in hate and violence and give strength to Iran’s anti-Semitic president [Mahmoud Ahmadinejad] and extremists like Hamas and Hezbollah.”
Hamas is a militant and political group that controls the Gaza Strip and is engaged in a power struggle with Fatah, the Palestinian faction that leads the Palestinian Authority and that governs the West Bank.
Hezbollah is a Lebanese political and military group that exercises control over large parts of southern Lebanon. Speaking to the S. Daniel Abraham Center for Middle East Peace, Clinton said that if Israel does not strengthen Fatah and the Palestinian Liberation Organization — which she called “a credible partner for peace” — it would empower Hamas.
“Israel can and should do more to support the Palestinian Authority’s efforts to build credible institutions and deliver results,” Clinton said. “If [Palestinian] President [Mahmoud] Abbas cannot deliver on these aspirations, there is no doubt his support will fade and Palestinians will turn to alternatives — including Hamas, and that way leads only to more conflict.”
The Obama administration responded with outrage last month when Israel announced plans for the construction of an additional 1,600 settler homes during a visit to the Jewish state by US Vice President Joe Biden. Clinton called the move “insulting.”
The administration has since sought to calm the resulting US-Israeli tension, and Clinton on Thursday repeated her view that the US commitment to Israel is “rock solid.” However, she also ticked off a long list of action points for Israel.
“We encourage Israel to continue building momentum toward a comprehensive peace by demonstrating respect for the legitimate aspirations of the Palestinians, stopping settlement activity and addressing the humanitarian needs in Gaza,” she said. “And to refrain from unilateral statements and actions that could undermine trust or risk prejudicing the outcome of talks.”
A fire caused by a burst gas pipe yesterday spread to several homes and sent a fireball soaring into the sky outside Malaysia’s largest city, injuring more than 100 people. The towering inferno near a gas station in Putra Heights outside Kuala Lumpur was visible for kilometers and lasted for several hours. It happened during a public holiday as Muslims, who are the majority in Malaysia, celebrate the second day of Eid al-Fitr. National oil company Petronas said the fire started at one of its gas pipelines at 8:10am and the affected pipeline was later isolated. Disaster management officials said shutting the
DITCH TACTICS: Kenyan officers were on their way to rescue Haitian police stuck in a ditch suspected to have been deliberately dug by Haitian gang members A Kenyan policeman deployed in Haiti has gone missing after violent gangs attacked a group of officers on a rescue mission, a UN-backed multinational security mission said in a statement yesterday. The Kenyan officers on Tuesday were on their way to rescue Haitian police stuck in a ditch “suspected to have been deliberately dug by gangs,” the statement said, adding that “specialized teams have been deployed” to search for the missing officer. Local media outlets in Haiti reported that the officer had been killed and videos of a lifeless man clothed in Kenyan uniform were shared on social media. Gang violence has left
US Vice President J.D. Vance on Friday accused Denmark of not having done enough to protect Greenland, when he visited the strategically placed and resource-rich Danish territory coveted by US President Donald Trump. Vance made his comment during a trip to the Pituffik Space Base in northwestern Greenland, a visit viewed by Copenhagen and Nuuk as a provocation. “Our message to Denmark is very simple: You have not done a good job by the people of Greenland,” Vance told a news conference. “You have under-invested in the people of Greenland, and you have under-invested in the security architecture of this
Japan unveiled a plan on Thursday to evacuate around 120,000 residents and tourists from its southern islets near Taiwan within six days in the event of an “emergency”. The plan was put together as “the security situation surrounding our nation grows severe” and with an “emergency” in mind, the government’s crisis management office said. Exactly what that emergency might be was left unspecified in the plan but it envisages the evacuation of around 120,000 people in five Japanese islets close to Taiwan. China claims Taiwan as part of its territory and has stepped up military pressure in recent years, including