Mideast Truce Raises Hopes and Doubts

Re “Each Side to Call Truce in Middle East,” Feb. 8: Now that the leaders of Israel and Palestine have shaken hands on yet another plan for peace between their peoples, there is hope that the killing and oppression on both sides there may come to an end within our lifetime. This is good. What we do not need at the moment is grandstanding by Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice and the Bush administration to make sure the world knows who was behind this.

Despite claims by George W. and his supporters that he has always been involved in the Israel/Palestine issue, it is obvious that true peacemaking there was a low priority for him and that we were on Israel’s side anyway. Now that things are moving again, Bush will want his credit, and Rice will do her usual truth-twisting to make it appear this was their intent all along. Amazing.

Bob Loza

Burbank

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As surely as day follows night and night follows day, negotiations between Ariel Sharon and Mahmoud Abbas are bound to fail -- not today, not next week, but sooner or later. The basic reason for the conflict between the Israelis and Palestinians: An unending stream of Jewish settlers continues to swarm into lands occupied by Palestinians, the settlers take these lands by force and Palestinians are left homeless. Resisters are killed or jailed.

Pundits talk about “hopeful signs” or “a good beginning.” There is no hope and there is no beginning of the end until settlers stop pouring into Palestinian lands. I predict that the slow genocide of the Palestinian people will continue because the current negotiations are a smoke screen for the real goal of hard-line conservative Israel, namely eventual complete ownership of the Palestinian territories by Israel.

Jerrold Cohen

Seal Beach

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I am hopeful to see the Israelis and Palestinians agree on a truce and talk about peace. Will it last? Unfortunately the reason the Palestinians give for a truce is that, as of now, the intifada is “not effective” -- not a hint about mass bombings of innocent women and children being wrong or simply immoral.

Devon Showley

Cypress