Main focus of Friday, April 29, 2011

New hope for a Palestinian state

The moderate Palestinian organisation Fatah and the radical Hamas reached a surprise peace agreement in Cairo on Thursday. This is a first step toward the creation of a Palestinian state provided Israel's refusal to deal with Hamas doesn't hamper the process, writes the press.

Le Monde - France

With an eye to the peace agreement between the Palestinian organisation Fatah and Hamas the left-liberal daily Le Monde calls for international recognition of a Palestinian state: "The Middle East stands at a crossroads.The peace negotiations have come to a standstill over the Israeli settlement policy in Palestine. The exasperation could lead to an outbreak of violence or a third Intifada. Now that the Arab people are taking their fate into their own hands, only a general recognition of the Palestinian state within the pre-1967 borders and with East Jerusalem as capital could open new perspectives for the future. ... So peace can win out over war. So further catastrophes may be avoided. And so the future of both peoples on this piece of land can be secured." (28/04/2011)

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Mladá fronta Dnes - Czech Republic

The Palestinian peace deal is rendered problematic above all by Hamas' radical ideology, writes the liberal daily Mladá fronta Dnes: "Already Israel is saying that a Palestinian leadership with potentially violent radicals is unacceptable. Worries are rife in the West over the fate of the Palestinian government. If it comes under the partial control of Hamas - which many Western states view as a terrorist organisation - that could render cooperation even more difficult. As things stand it is to be expected that part of the substantial aid money provided by the West to the Palestinians will end up in Hamas' coffers. If the Palestinians want the West to respect their representatives, Hamas must rethink its ideology from the ground up, a step Hamas has yet to announce." (29/04/2011)

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The Times - United Kingdom

Israel should make the best of its opponents' current weakness and seize the chance to make peace with the Palestinians, writes the liberal conservative daily The Times: "The Israeli-Palestinian conflict has so far proved intractable because it is not primarily a border dispute. If it were, then a territorial settlement, along frontiers approximating the pre-1967 armistice line, might have been achieved decades ago. A more fundamental problem is that Israel has not had a negotiating partner that it can trust. Not all Israeli governments have been assiduous in seeking one, but the demand for security is incontrovertibly just. That much helps to explain the position of Mr Netanyahu. But his position is politically self-defeating. The Arab Spring has undermined the death-squad despotism in Syria; that in turn weakens Hamas, Syria's client. The most opportune time to secure a pacific, two-state territorial accommodation in the Middle East is when its enemies are weakest. That time is now." (29/04/2011)

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Frankfurter Allgemeine Zeitung - Germany

The Palestinian reconciliation is an important step, for without Hamas' integration there can be no peace in the Middle East, writes the conservative Frankfurter Allgemeine Zeitung: "It is unclear where this step will lead. But the attempt to weaken the Hamas 'terrorist organisation' which won the 2006 elections by isolating it has undoubtedly failed. Unless Hamas and its supporters are integrated there will be no Palestinian state and no peace with Israel. This time it is at least important to find out whether Hamas is prepared to compromise. Prime Minister Netanyahu's demand that Fatah decide between Israel and Hamas certainly won't lead anywhere. What has he done for the peace talks so far?" (29/04/2011)

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