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Caretaker Government Perhaps Israel's Worst Ever: Shaath

All those who do not want the peace process and want to pursue the aggression and occupation are part of the new Israeli government: Shaath

CAIRO, November 7 (IslamOnline & News Agencies) - The Israeli caretaker cabinet is perhaps the worst ever in the history of the Jewish state, Palestinian international cooperation minister Nabil Shaath said Wednesday, November 6.

"This government is perhaps the worst ever to govern Israel until now, and all those who do not want the peace process and want to pursue the aggression and occupation are part of it," Shaath told reporters during a visit to Egypt.

Early elections are to be held in Israel early next year, following last week's collapse of Prime Minister Ariel Sharon's coalition government after the withdrawal of the center-left Labor, Agence France-Presse (AFP) said.

A hawkish narrow right-wing coalition is to govern in the meantime, including leading hardliners such as former prime minister Benjamin Netanyahu and former army chief of staff Shaul Mofaz, in addition to the current prime minister.

"This forces us to ask our Arab brothers and all international parties, and above all the United States, to demonstrate care toward this government and its behavior," Shaath said after talks with Egyptian Foreign Minister Ahmed Maher.

Shaath urged the international community to take measures likely to stop Israeli aggression and end the occupation, otherwise the government will postpone until the Israeli elections, whose results nobody knows.

The Palestinian official said he gave Maher a message from Palestinian leader Yasser Arafat to President Hosni Mubarak.

Shaath said his visit to Cairo was the last stop on a tour which also took him to Saudi Arabia and Jordan to discuss the U.S. "roadmap" for peace.

The blueprint, which calls for the creation of a Palestinian state alongside Israel by 2005, was put together by the United Nations, the European Union, Russia and the United States, the so-called Middle East quartet.

It was discussed with Arab states by U.S. envoy William Burns during a regional tour last month.

Shaath said the Palestinians pledged not to respond to the document before listening to the opinions of Arab countries, particularly Egypt, adding that the topic would be debated by Arab foreign ministers meeting in Cairo Sunday, November 10.

He said it was necessary to improve the document and fill certain gaps.

Shaath said the Palestinians were particularly unhappy because the roadmap contained no agenda and it did not deal sufficiently with the problem of settlements and the question of Jerusalem was hardly mentioned there.

"The Palestinian side in no case wants to cause this roadmap to fail. On the contrary, we want it supported on solid bases," he said.

For his part, Maher said Egypt "does not comment on Israeli governments.

"We only protest against the policies pursued by Israel." Those policies have failed "because they have achieved neither peace nor security but, on the contrary, have caused crises in the very heart of Israel."

He added, however, that he was sure the United States was aware of the "gravity of the situation and the dangers of the advent of a new, more obstinate government."

Washington "will continue to work with other members of the quartet to accelerate efforts aimed at beginning serious negotiations" on the Middle East, he said.

Meanwhile in Occupied Jerusalem, Israeli border guards opened fire on a car, seriously wounding two Arab Israelis at a road block in northern Israel early Thursday, November 7, police sources said.

Believing those in the car to be connected with Palestinian activists, the Israeli guards opened fire on the driver and the three passengers -- from the Arab Israeli town of Taibeh, near Tel Aviv, AFP said.

 

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