Camp David II
In July 2000, President Clinton invited Prime
Minister Barak and President Arafat to Camp
David to conclude negotiations on the long-overdue
final status agreement. Barak proclaimed
his "red lines": Israel would not return to its
pre-1967 borders; East Jerusalem with its
175,000 Jewish settlers would remain under Israeli
sovereignty; Israel would annex settlement
blocs in the West Bank containing some 80 percent
of the 180,000 Jewish settlers; and Israel
would accept no legal or moral responsibility for
the creation of the Palestinian refugee
problem. The Palestinians, in accord with UN
Security Council resolution 242 and their
understanding of the spirit of the Oslo Declaration
of Principles, sought Israeli withdrawal
from the vast majority of the West Bank and the
Gaza Strip, including East Jerusalem, and
recognition of an independent state in those
territories.
The distance between the two parties, especially on
the issues of Jerusalem and refugees,
made it impossible to reach an agreement at the
Camp David summit meeting in July 2000.
Although Barak offered a far more extensive Israeli
withdrawal from the West Bank than any
other Israeli leader had publicly considered, he
insisted on maintaining Israeli sovereignty over
East Jerusalem. This was unacceptable to the
Palestinians and to most of the Muslim world.
Arafat left Camp David with enhanced stature among
his constituents because he did not yield
to American and Israeli pressure. Barak returned
home to face political crisis within his own
government, including the abandonment of coalition
partners who felt he had offered the
Palestinians too much. However, the Israeli taboo
on discussing the future of Jerusalem was
broken. Many Israelis began to realize for the
first time that they might never achieve peace if
they insisted on imposing their terms on the
Palestinians.
____________________________________________________________
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In July 2000, President Clinton invited Prime
Minister Barak and President Arafat to Camp
David to conclude negotiations on the long-overdue
final status agreement. Barak proclaimed
his "red lines": Israel would not return to its
pre-1967 borders; East Jerusalem with its
175,000 Jewish settlers would remain under Israeli
sovereignty; Israel would annex settlement
blocs in the West Bank containing some 80 percent
of the 180,000 Jewish settlers; and Israel
would accept no legal or moral responsibility for
the creation of the Palestinian refugee
problem. The Palestinians, in accord with UN
Security Council resolution 242 and their
understanding of the spirit of the Oslo Declaration
of Principles, sought Israeli withdrawal
from the vast majority of the West Bank and the
Gaza Strip, including East Jerusalem, and
recognition of an independent state in those
territories.
The distance between the two parties, especially on
the issues of Jerusalem and refugees,
made it impossible to reach an agreement at the
Camp David summit meeting in July 2000.
Although Barak offered a far more extensive Israeli
withdrawal from the West Bank than any
other Israeli leader had publicly considered, he
insisted on maintaining Israeli sovereignty over
East Jerusalem. This was unacceptable to the
Palestinians and to most of the Muslim world.
Arafat left Camp David with enhanced stature among
his constituents because he did not yield
to American and Israeli pressure. Barak returned
home to face political crisis within his own
government, including the abandonment of coalition
partners who felt he had offered the
Palestinians too much. However, the Israeli taboo
on discussing the future of Jerusalem was
broken. Many Israelis began to realize for the
first time that they might never achieve peace if
they insisted on imposing their terms on the
Palestinians.
____________________________________________________________
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Send a newsletter, share photos & files, conduct polls, organize chat events. Visit http://in/ groups.yahoo.com