Welcome to the return of Team Shalom Fry'd Daze. Fry'd Daze was a long running series dedicated to dialogue in the Middle East. For a while I pulled it, but recently was asked to bring it back amd decided that I should. These diaries are not intended to be a flame forum, but rather something where community members can meet and exchange ideas about I/P and/or issues that concern the Middle East.
Generally, these diaries take the form of four to five news articles and short commentary selected by the diarist. These stories however, are just a platform to get discussion going. The diaries from now on will publish under the banner of the Team Shalom
What is Team Shalom:
"Team Shalom is Team Peace. We are a group of Kossacks supporting a fair, pragmatic, and realistic resolution to the Israeli-Palestinian conflict through the two-state solution. We support Israel's continued existence as a Jewish and democratic state, with it existing alongside Palestine, a Palestinian and democratic state, as friends and neighbors. We believe this is the only way forward and the only way to achieve an enduring peace. This is the view endorsed by the overwhelming majority of the world's nations, including the Quartet, which consists of the United States, Russia, the European Union, and the United Nations."
So please participate. The only thing we ask is that you keep comments respectful, reality based and please no use of Anti-Semetic or Anti-Arab memes. Enjoy!
Our First story comes from Maan News where Hamas is considering moving its headquarters from Damascus to Cairo:
BETHLEHEM (Ma'an) -- Hamas leader Mahmoud Zahhar said Friday that the Islamist movement was considering moving its headquarters from the Syrian capital to Cairo.
Zahhar said several possibilities were being considered in light of the security situation in Syria, which is "dangerous for all Palestinians -- not just for Hamas."
He added: "There are a number of options and Egypt is one of them."
But Egypt's ambassador to the Palestinian Authority said Zahhar's remarks did not reflect official policy
YNET also reports this:
The issue of the group's activities in Damascus has created major difficulties in negotiations between Israel and Syria over the years. Jerusalem has often demanded they be banished from Syria, but was met with refusal.
Last April, al-Hayat reported that Hamas' political leadership was planning to relocate to Qatar, which reportedly agreed to host politburo chief Khaled Mashaal but not the group's military echelon.
Israel recently broke off relations with Qatar so one would imagine that that might be a place that the political and activist echelons could end up. I think it would be a stretch to assume that the Military Wings of Hamas will find a home in any of the neighboring states.
Our Next story comes from Haaretz where UN Secretary General Ban Ki Moon said Palestinian statehood is 'long overdue'
The Palestinian people are "long overdue" in their quest for an independent state, United Nations Secretary General Ban Ki-moon said on Friday, ahead of a Palestinian push for statehood in the UN planned for later this month.....
.....In a letter addressed to Ban's Ramallah office, Palestinian activists urged the leader of the international community to "exert all possible efforts toward the achievement of the Palestinian people's just demands."
Speaking on Friday, the UN chief was quoted by the French news agency AFP as saying he fully supported Palestinian statehood: "The two state vision where Israel and Palestinians can live... side by side in peace and security -- that is a still a valid vision and I fully support it."
"And I support also the statehood of Palestinians; an independent, sovereign state of Palestine. It has been long overdue," Ban told reporters in Canberra, adding that a "recognition of a state is something to be determined by the member states."
Right now the the Palestinian motion is looking to succeed in the United Nations General Assembly with 140+ votes (it needs 128) but be vetoed in the United Nations Security Council. When this happens, though statehood would not be acheived it would upgrade the Palestinian diplomatic status from their current observer status. Yesterday, I wrote a diary showing the situation as it stands. Please reference this for the discussion: Palestinian Bid for Statehood - What's happening?
In a semi-surprise the Liberal American Pro-Israel lobby J Street came out IN FAVOR of the American veto. The Jewish Week has a great article on what is happening with that regarding both J Street and Shalom Achshav (Peace Now).
From J Street's statement; J Street Supports US Veto of Palestinian UN Application
Street’s mission is to promote a two-state solution – to achieve two states for two peoples, with the national home of the Jewish people living beside the national home of the Palestinian people in peace and security. In our view, this is an urgent, existential necessity for Israel to assure its future as both a democracy and Jewish homeland.
In our view, a Palestinian application for full UN membership this September does not stand to appreciably advance that goal or improve conditions on the ground. We will therefore support the Obama administration’s intention to veto a Palestinian application for UN membership at the Security Council.
Even as we counsel against a Palestinian application for UN membership at this time, we recognize that the Palestinian approach to the UN is a legal and non-violent attempt to achieve self-determination. Accordingly, we will lobby against moves by the US Congress to punitively cut aid to the Palestinian Authority that will serve only to undercut the prospects for resolving the conflict and threaten Israel’s own security. Likewise, we will oppose retaliatory efforts by the US to pull back from UN commitments, which stand to undermine both American interests and the vital work of the UN globally.
Naturally, the Palestinian leadership was disappointed and in a question and answer session the Palestinian envoy to U.S. Maen Rashid Areikat stated:
"I am disappointed, because we thought J Street was going to be a different U.S. Jewish organization and play a different role, take a more courageous position, and understand why we are going to the UN, but I understand their reasons. It's obvious they wanted to issue a balanced paper. They also mentioned that they want to see the negotiations resumed, that they want to see the two-state solution. Their position on the UN Security Council resolution on settlements backfired, they were heavily criticized for it. They are in a delicate position and are trying to strike a balanced approach. But having said that, we were accustomed to J Street taking bold positions, that's what differentiated them from other Jewish groups in this country that blindly support Israeli position - they've been objective and reasonable. And they always understood the conflict and looked at it from both angles, urging both sides to work for the conflict solution. I still believe they are an important group, that they have a role to play and they can impact the thinking of the American Jewish community and the general public in this country".
Finally, we have the seemingly growing crises with Turkey filling the newspapers (though for all the talk the Israelis and Turks will be running cooperative efforts with 30 other nations in counter terrorism coordination).
First we have Turkey seeking legal actionagainst the Israeli soldiers involved in the fight and deaths of activists on the Mavi Marmara:
Amid rising tensions between Israel and Turkey over the Palmer Report, Istanbul's chief prosecutor approached the Turkish intelligence services in a request to reveal the identities of the Israeli soldiers involved in the May 2010 raid on the Mavi Marmara ship, in which nine Turkish civilians were killed.
Meanwhile, a lawyer affiliated with IHH – the Turkish group that organized the flotilla – claimed the organization handed the prosecutor a list with over ten names of IDF soldiers that were onboard the vessel, Turkish newspaper al-Zaman reported on Friday.
"We have handed the list to Istanbul's prosecutor and are now waiting for arrest warrants," said Attorney Ramzan Turk, adding that the list is based on information received by other IDF soldiers who "regretted the incident and gave me the names of the soldiers."
Ramzan noted that the soldiers who provided the names did not take part in the raid.
This is an interesting charge that IDF soldiers would be giving names of Sheyatet 13 commando's to a foreign government. Personally, I think that is a key component of this story. The Turks are also seeking charges against Prime Minister Netanyahu, Foreign Minister Avigdor Lieberman and then Chief of Staff for the IDF Gabi Ashkenazi.
However, not to be outdone Foreign Minister Lieberman immediately dished out one of his usual "winning" statements; Israel to ‘punish’ Turkey
Lieberman is also planning to set meetings with the heads of Kurdish rebel group PKK in Europe in order to “cooperate with them and boost them in every possible area.” In these meetings, the Kurds may ask Israel for military aid in the form of training and arms supplies, a move that would constitute a major anti-Turkish position should it materialize.
However, the violent clashes between Turkey and the Kurds only constitute one reason prompting accusations that Ankara is violating human rights. Hence, another means in Lieberman’s “toolbox” vis-à-vis Erdogan is a diplomatic campaign where Israeli missions worldwide will be instructed to join the fight and report illegal Turkish moves against minorities.
The tough response formulated by Lieberman stems, among other things, from the foreign minister’s desire to make it clear to Erdogan that his anti-Israeli moves are not a “one-way street.”
The Prime Ministers Office seems to be distancing itself from the Foreign Ministers Statement:
The PMO's office did not deny or confirm the plan, yet called for restraint with regards to statements concerning Turkey. "Our policy was and remains to prevent a breakdown of relations with Turkey and easing the tensions between the countries," it said in a statement.
The statement also said that "the prime minister and the government discussed different theoretical option in case of an escalation. Yet a decision will be made only and if necessary. Israel has and is acting responsibly and hopes Turkey will act accordingly."
It seems to me that if one really wanted to deal with reducing tensions in the region the P.M.'s office would not have put the Lieberman in charge of the Foreign Ministry. It's really pretty simple. Lieberman is a "known" quantity this kind of thing should be no surprise...
AND IN A BREAKING STORY:
Egyptian protesters storm wall outside Israeli embassy in Cairo
Egyptian protesters on Friday broke down parts of a protective concrete wall outside the building housing the Israeli embassy in Cairo.
Protesters were using large wooden poles and hammers to bring down the wall. Others were dancing and singing in celebration as they carried the Egyptian flags.
And Ynet reports:
Egyptian groups also called activists to spray graffiti slogans against Israel on the wall and erect a memorial for the soldiers killed during the attack in south Israel.
Eyewitnesses said policemen and soldiers stood by as the activists hammered away at the roughly 2.5 metres (8-foot) high wall.
Egyptian officials said the wall was intended to protect residents of the high-rise embassy building, not the Israeli mission.
The move against the embassy wall came as around 4,000 Egyptian activists demonstrated in central Cairo demanding faster reforms, ending military trials for civilians.
Please comment and add your own stories to the series.
Shalom, Salam, Peace!