CNN.com November 30, 2003
Israelis, Palestinians to sign unofficial 'accord'
By Matthew Chance
Israelis and Palestinians arrived Sunday in Geneva for Monday's scheduled signing of an unofficial agreement aimed at pushing the Mideast peace process forward -- the so-called "Geneva Accord."
The plan, which calls for major concessions on both sides of the Mideast conflict, has no official backing from the Palestinian or Israeli administrations.
It is based on behind-the-scenes work by Israelis who oppose the government of Prime Minister Ariel Sharon, Palestinians -- some of whom are close to Palestinian Authority Chairman Yasser Arafat -- and academics on both sides.
Arafat and Sharon have refused to endorse the plan. Internal dissent in Arafat's Fatah Party has prompted four Palestinian officials -- including two negotiators who helped draft the agreement -- to miss the signing ceremony.
At a crossing terminal between Gaza and Egypt on Sunday, about 100 protesters carrying Palestinian flags, flags of the Islamic fundamentalist group Hamas and Fatah flags tried unsuccessfully to prevent Palestinian delegates from entering Egypt on their way to Geneva, witnesses said.
Few politicians are willing to publicly associate themselves with the plan, which seeks to directly address core issues in the Israeli-Palestinian standoff.
For example, the plan calls for a divided Jerusalem as capital of both Israel and a proposed Palestinian state.
Both sides lay claim to the ancient city, which was divided between Israeli and Arab control until the 1967 Arab-Israeli war, when it was captured by Israeli forces.
The Palestinians want east Jerusalem as the capital of a Palestinian state, while the Israelis insist that the city will remain forever undivided under Israeli control.
The plan also calls on Palestinians to make a difficult concession -- giving up what they call the "right of return" for Palestinians and descendants of those refugees who left or were forced to leave Israel when it became a state in 1948. The plan would allow a minimal number of Palestinians, approved by Israel, to return.
Other peace plans, including the current "road map" -- backed by the United States, the United Nations, Russia and the European Union -- put such issues on hold until much later in the process.
Israeli barrier may block peace talks
Meanwhile, on the official peace process front, Palestinian Prime Minister Ahmed Qorei said Saturday that "there is no reason for negotiations" with Israel if the Jewish state continues building its West Bank barrier.
He said the Palestinians would be ready to sit down with Sharon's government if it shows a willingness to compromise on the issue.
"The Palestinian Cabinet welcomes a meeting with Sharon but insists that such a meeting will not take place without the necessary preparation," Qorei said at a news conference after a Cabinet meeting.
U.N. Secretary-General Kofi Annan said Friday that Israel "is not in compliance" with the demand of the General Assembly that it "stop and reverse the construction" of what Israel calls a security barrier. The Palestinians consider the barrier a land grab.
The barrier's route stretches north to south, much of it inside the so-called Green Line -- the pre-1967 border between Israel and the West Bank, which was part of Jordan at the time of the Six Day War. It is estimated that it will enclose about 77 square kilometers (about 30 square miles) of occupied land.
At least 11 Palestinian villages will end up on the Israeli side of the barrier, according to globalsecurity.org, a nonpartisan international policy-research group.
Israel has built 150 kilometers (93 miles) of the barrier in the north. When finished, the barrier will stretch 689 kilometers (428 miles) at an estimated cost of $1.5 billion -- a little more than $3.5 million per mile.
Qorei said he will meet with Sharon if the Israeli leader sincerely reviews Palestinian concerns about the barrier.
The Palestinian prime minister said: "Our people are suffering, our land is being stolen, so we will not meet with Sharon just to give him cover for his actions and give him legitimacy. We need to ask ourselves what we want to achieve from such a meeting. We are serious. We want real negotiations."
Groundwork for a Sharon-Qorei meeting is being laid. On Sunday, Palestinian and Israeli diplomats are scheduled to meet to prepare for a sit-down talk between the leaders.
Qorei is the Palestinian Authority's second prime minister, having taken the helm when Mahmoud Abbas resigned after a power struggle with Arafat about security issues.
© Copyright 2003, Cable News Network
