Israel Seeks Action Before Peace Talks
AP
Date: 11-02-05
By BARRY SCHWEID, AP Diplomatic Writer
WASHINGTON - Israeli Defense Minister Shaul Mofaz pledged Wednesday to ease the lives of Palestinians and to pursue peacemaking with Mahmoud Abbas once the Palestinian leader dismantles violent groups.
"We want to deal with President Abbas," Mofaz said after meeting for more than an hour with Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice before going to the White House to confer with national security adviser Stephen Hadley.
"We are waiting to see how the Palestinian Authority will deal with terrorist groups," the Israeli minister said.
At a news conference, Mofaz suggested Rice was in accord with Israel's campaign against Hamas and other groups the State Department lists as terrorist.
"The United States believes we have a right to defend our people," Mofaz said. "The U.S. is very clear we have to give the best security to the Israeli people."
In its anti-terror campaign, Israel tightened already severe restrictions on Palestinians, making it harder for them to get to their jobs and go about their daily lives.
Mofaz, promising to scale back, said, "We will do our best to ease the lives of the Palestinians." He said Israel hoped that if their economy improved they would support Abbas and not militant groups.
Rice made no public statement, but State Department spokesman Sean McCormack said there had been progress in providing freedom of movement to Palestinians. He said while the Palestinian Authority must stop violence, Israel was obliged to ease the "daily plight" of the Palestinian people.
"Part of that involves talking about crossing and checkpoints and those sorts of things," he said.
Mofaz is due to meet Thursday with Vice President Dick Cheney and separately with members of Congress. On Friday, he is to meet with Defense Secretary Donald H. Rumsfeld.
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