Research Visit to Jerusalem

Mick Dumper has just undertaken a research visit to Jerusalem (4th-8th February). Based on discussions with a wide range of Israelis and Palestinians, he returned depressed about the post-Annapolis summit momentum in the peace process. He detected very little prospect of a deal before the US elections.

He observes:

'Bush and Rice's credibility is evaporating week by week; Israel is basically waiting for an opportune moment to go into Gaza; HAMAS are seeking to provoke them as drawing the region into its conflict with Israel will be the only way out of their predicament; FATAH are being bought by US and EU largesse to prevent any moves towards reconciliation with HAMAS; Israeli Prime Minister Olmert is hanging on to power by his finger-tips and will fall once the issue of Jerusalem is discussed, and the notion of a significant role for the international community is treated both with disdain and suspicion (and UN ME Peace Envoy, Tony Blair, is not helping one iota in this regard).

Higher echelons in Brussels and Washington may be giving out different signals but the view from Jerusalem is that it looks as if Palestinian -Israeli peace negotiations are being used as a tool to keep the international funds flowing to the Palestinian Authority and the US off the backs of the Israeli government. Finally, never have I heard so much talk of the one-state solution, (i.e. a single bi-national state) by both Palestinians and Israelis.'

A fuller account can be found in the article 'Gloom over Jerusalem' on the 'comment is free...' section on the 'Guardian Unlimited' website.