MAKING A NEW MIDDLE EAST : Voices
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Voices from today and yesterday on ties between Israel and the Palestinians.
“We cannot accept that the PLO will become a party to the (Israeli-Arab) negotiations. . . . The PLO is still engaged in terror. Shooting and talking don’t go together.”
Shimon Peres, Israel’s prime minister in 1985
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“The Israeli and the Palestinian people, who fought each other for almost a century, have agreed to move decisively on the path of dialogue, understanding and cooperation. We live in an ancient land and as our land is small so must our reconciliation be great. As our wars have been long, so must our healing be swift. Deep gaps call for lofty bridges.”
Foreign Minister Peres, at Monday’s ceremony
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“Nothing and nobody can deter the PLO from attacking its main enemy, Israel.”
PLO Chairman Yasser Arafat, in 1989
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“My people are hoping that this agreement which we are signing today marks the beginning of the end of a chapter of pain and suffering which has lasted throughout this century. My people are hoping that this agreement which we are signing today will usher in an age of peace, coexistence and equal rights.”
Arafat at Monday’s ceremony
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“They want all of Israel. . . . If we give back (the West Bank) they will use it as a base to strike for the rest of the territory they want, no matter what they say. And they would have an easier time of it because they’d be closer in.”
Yitzhak Shamir, Israel’s prime minister in 1987
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“We always like to look at the beautiful face, with an international (peace) conference, self-determination, a Palestinian state. But the other side of the coin is the ugly one--recognition of Israel, negotiations with it, a two-state solution.”
Faisal Husseini, Palestinian leader, in 1988
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“A peace of the brave is within our reach. Throughout the Middle East, there is a great yearning for the quiet miracle of a normal life. We know a difficult road lies ahead.”
President Clinton
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“We who have fought against you, the Palestinians, we say to you today in a loud and a clear voice: Enough of blood and tears. Enough! “
Israeli Prime Minister Yitzhak Rabin on Monday
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