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by Richard Engel JERUSALEM (AFP) - Seven years after the historic Oslo accords, the Palestinians pointed the finger of blame at Israel as the two sides missed Wednesday's deadline for a final pact to end half a century of conflict.
"The disrespecting of dates has been the character of the Israeli negotiating method in all signed agreements beginning with Oslo and ending with Sharm el-Sheikh," senior negotiator Saeb Erekat told Voice of Palestine radio. Twelve months ago, Israel and the Palestinians agreed in the Egyptian resort of Sharm el-Sheikh to find definitive solutions to the troublesome issues of control over Jerusalem, the fate of 3.7 million Palestinian refugees and final borders by September 13th. None has emerged. Israel appeared largely unaffected by the passing of the deadline following Sunday's decision by the PLO not to declare an independent state on Wednesday, a move that many had feared would lead to an outbreak of violence. Israeli army chief of staff Shaul Mofaz, however, expressed fears that terrorism and widespread unrest will erupt among Palestinians if no agreement is reached soon, the Jerusalem Post reported. Despite a year of negotiations, which have progressed like a cardiogram with rapid bursts of activity punctuating periods of lull, the two sides have not come to terms on any of the key sticking points. Israeli Prime Minister Ehud Barak, his government in tatters over his peace policies, said Tuesday that he estimated the prospects of an accord at 50-50, again calling on Palestinian leader Yasser Arafat to show "flexibility." Top Arafat aide Nabil Abu Rudeina said that the Palestinians were urging the United States to pressure Israel into accepting U.N. resolutions calling for its withdrawal from occupied land. "As agreed with President [Bill] Clinton, we are going to give extra time over the four or five coming weeks for a chance to save the peace process. But so far the Israelis are still wasting time, they are still not serious enough," he told reporters in Gaza City. Asked about the prospects for peace, he said: "The chances are very low." Time is running out, with Clinton in the final months of his presidency while Barak who has been without a parliamentary majority for two months, is facing the possibility of early elections. Arafat said Tuesday the Palestinians had given a "new chance for peace" with the PLO Central Council decision to push back the end of the interim period of autonomy to November 15th, the anniversary of his symbolic 1988 Algiers declaration of independence. Washington said U.S. Middle East envoy Dennis Ross would become involved in the process over the next couple of weeks. Contacts have continued since the collapse of the Camp David peace summit in July over the fate of Jerusalem and its holy sites although the Palestinians say they are still awaiting a response from Israel about the resumption of intensive negotiations. On the diplomatic front, Israel has dispatched its acting foreign minister Shlomo Ben Ami to New York to meet U.S. officials during the U.N. General Assembly meeting, which began on Tuesday. Ben Ami again ruled out any Israeli concessions over the fate of sites holy to both Jews and Muslims in the walled Old City. "Various ideas are under study but Israel cannot renounce sovereignty over the site of the [Jewish] temple nor accept foreign sovereignty," he told army radio. The site, known to Jews as Temple Mount as it is built over the site of the Second Temple destroyed in 70 A.D., is also revered by Muslims as their third holiest site, the Noble Sanctuary which houses the al-Aqsa mosque and the Dome of the Rock. |
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