The Israeli Parliament recently approved the preliminary reading of a bill that would insure Jerusalem stays undivided regardless of any future deals with Palestine. "In 1980, the Israeli Parliament passed a Basic Law stating that 'Jerusalem, complete and united, is the capital of Israel.' [This new bill] proposes an amendment to that Basic Law, stipulating that any change in the city's status would require 80 votes in the 120-seat legislature, instead of the majority of 61 required today." Gideon Saar, a Likud lawmaker and supporter of the new bill, says that its being passed only two weeks prior to the planned Middle East Peace Conference in Annapolis, Maryland, tomorrow sends a clear message to the world that Israel and Parliament refuse to divide Jerusalem. An open vote was taken on the bill and the result was 54 to 24 in favor of its being passed; however, all of this is still preliminary action. A spokeswoman for Prime Minister Olmert said to the press that Israel and Palestine have both reiterated their support for "a long-dormant 2003 plan for peace...The first stage of the [plan] requires the Palestinians to build institutions and act to halt all violence against Israelis. It calls on Israel to freeze all settlement construction and to dismantle 'immediately' more than 20 settlement outposts erected since March 2001."
The Peace Conference is to be held tomorrow in Annapolis, Maryland, and hopes are high that some agreement will be met and a plan of action set down (preferably on paper). Let's see what can be accomplished now.
Isabel Kershner
14 November 2007
The International Herald Tribune
Jerusalem
http://www.iht.com/articles/2007/11/14/africa/mideast.php
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