Arab League Land-Swap Offer Angers Palestinians
The decision by the Arab League’s Washington delegation to offer a land swap to Israel has raised the ire of Palestinians, who say the move was unauthorized, reports Dalia Hatuqa.
Earlier this week, a media storm erupted in Israel and the US over an Arab League announcement that the Palestinians have agreed to the possibility of land swaps with Israel as opposed to a rigid conformation to the "Green Line” or pre-1967 borders.
While Israeli officials such as Tzipi Livni, chief negotiator with the Palestinians, called the step “very positive,” the news was met with anger in Palestinian circles. In a statement released to the media, Hamas expressed “deep concern about the … principle of land swaps with the occupation.”
“We were hoping that the Arab ministerial delegation would ask Washington to pressure [Israel] into stopping settlement activity on our occupied land … Our experience with [Israel] has taught us that that it merely seeks more concessions … that it doesn’t want peace, but seeks to impose a fait accompli on our people.”
Palestinian officials stressed that land swaps were already part of all proposed peace agreements.
