[Ha'aretz omits Bush's remarks about Israeli settlement activity and other
issues. We will get that from another source. - mew]
Last update - 17:50 20/10/2005

Bush: Palestinians must reject and fight terrorism
http://www.haaretz.com/hasen/spages/636147.html
By Shmuel Rosner (Washington) and Arnon Regular, Haaretz Correspondents, and
News Agencies


U.S. President George W. Bush on Thursday said that the Palestinian Authority
must reject and fight terrorism for the Middle East peace process to be able
to move forward.

Speaking at a joint news conference after a one-hour meeting with Palestinian
Authority Chairman Mahmoud Abbas in the Oval Office, Bush said the Israeli
withdrawal from Gaza and parts of the West Bank last month had created new
opportunities and responsibilities for the Palestinians.

"The way forward must begin by confronting the threat that armed gangs pose to
a genuinely democratic Palestine," Bush said.

"In the short term the Palestinian Authority must... earn the confidence of
its neighbors by rejecting and fighting terrorism," he said.

Bush said that the greatest challenge was to establish trust between the two
sides, but said that the "disengagement established trust, thanks to the
leadership of Abbas and [Prime Minister Ariel] Sharon."

Speaking after Bush, Abbas said the time had come to "put an end to the
Palestinian-Israeli conflict," and asserted that the PA has taken steps to
impose the rule of law and public order. He assured Bush that election of a
Palestinian legislature in January would establish one law to govern the area.

Abbas reiterated the Palestinian "commitment to peace," but warned that the
movement toward democracy in the territories could flag in the face of the
ongoing occupation and "the absence of freedom."

"We are following a policy I believe is successful," he said. "All
organizations accepted the hudna [temporary truce], then we moved to the next
stage - to ban public demonstrations of weaponry, to make all groups part of
Palestinian politics."

"We were promised peace, independence and freedom, and I hope we will achieve
this," he added.

Bush also called on the Arab states to take particular responsibility to help
the Palestinians build a strong economy.

He said that the United States would use its influence to help "realize a
shared vision of two democratic states - Israel and Palestine - living side by
side in peace and security."

The president had criticism for Israeli policies in the territories, saying
Jerusalem "should not undertake any activity that contravenes its road map
obligations," a reference to the Middle East peace plan devised by the Quartet
of the United States, the United Nations, the European Union and Russia.

Without elaboration, the president said Israel would be "held to account" for
any actions that hamper peacemaking or burden the lives of Palestinians.

He called on Israel to stop constructing settlements on
the West Bank. Abbas, in response, insisted on Israel lifting curbs on
Palestinian travel in the West Bank, saying they had turned the lives of
Palestinians into "hardship and humiliation."

Abbas also said Israel must implement agreements regarding settlement
expansion and construction of the West Bank separation fence.

Bush concluded by saying that he was a "heck of a lot more confident" of peace
prospects than when he first took office five years ago. He said both Abbas
and Sharon were committed to making peace.

Steinitz: Abbas should fight terror or stay in Muqata
Ahead of the meeting, Likud MK Yuval Steinitz, the chairman of the Knesset
Foreign Affairs and Defense Committee, said that if Abbas did not fight
terror, Israel should restrict him to the Muqata.

The time has come for Israel to make Abbas' choices clear, the Itim news
agency quoted Steinitz as saying.

"Either he fights terror and disarms the organizations, or Israel will behave
toward him as it did toward his predecessor and isolate him in the Muqata,"
said Steinitz, referring to the PA chairman's headquarters in the West Bank
city of Ramallah.

Israel kept Abbas' predecessor, Yasser Arafat, trapped in the Muqata for
almost three years until his death in November 2004, accusing him of fanning
the flames of Palestinian militancy and doing nothing to combat terrorism.

Ahead of his meeting with Bush, Abbas accused Israel of strengthening
Palestinian factions other than the ruling Fatah movement by isolating the
Gaza Strip after the disengagement and expanding settlements in the West Bank.

"Israel's lack of regard for the road map is having a powerfully negative
effect on Palestinian society at an extremely critical time in our democratic
development," Abbas wrote in a piece published by The Wall Street Journal on
Thursday.

Steinitz criticized Abbas' comments Thursday. "It's clear that there is no end
to audacity," the MK said. "The man who is personally making it possible for
Hamas and the other terror organizations to hold onto their weapons and
prepare for another round of bloodshed is accusing Israel of strengthening
them."

Abbas wrote in the Journal that "the moderates and the fundamentalists" are
struggling "for the hearts and minds of the Palestinian people."

He said he had created "a climate of peace" since his January election and
that polls consistently show a majority of Palestinians wanted to live in a
state at peace beside Israel.

"Yet this climate of peace needs the help of the U.S. and the international
community: For without sustained pressure on the Israeli government to sit
down and negotiate, Israel will only bolster those within Palestinian society
who do not share the majority's desire for peace," he wrote.

"Unfortunately, Palestinians cannot pursue the Road Map alone," he said,
referring to a U.S.-devised peace plan calling for Palestinian statehood in
Gaza and the West Bank beside a secure Israel.

"Israel has created obstacles in the face of a full and unconditional return
to the negotiating table and acted as if Israel can resolve the Middle East
conflict unilaterally."

Abbas met with U.S. Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice on Wednesday night to
prepare for his meeting with Bush. Rice demanded that Abbas bring order to the
Gaza Strip.

Before dawn Thursday, Abbas met with Meretz-Yahad head Yossi Beilin, who was
also visiting Washington. The Palestinian leader told Beilin that the purpose
of his trip to the American capital was to ensure that Palestinian elections
will be held as scheduled and without interference, despite Hamas'
participation. Beilin told Abbas that it is vital that the PA commit to
disarming Hamas immediately after the elections are held.