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Bush arrives in West Bank
10/01/2008 11:43 - (SA)
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| A Hamas supporter steps on a poster of US President George W Bush during a protest in Gaza City against his visit to Israel and the West Bank. (Hatem Moussa, AP) |
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Hossam Ezzedine
Ramallah - US President George W Bush arrived in a sceptical West Bank on Thursday to tell the divided Palestinians that violence on Israel has to stop before a Middle East peace deal can be sealed.
Fog grounded his helicopter and Bush was driven in a convoy from Jerusalem to Ramallah for his meetings with Palestinian president Mahmud Abbas.
It is his first visit to the West Bank since taking office in 2001 and only the second visit ever to the Palestinian territories by a sitting US president.
Abbas welcomed Bush on a red carpet inside the Muqata government compound and the two leaders shook hands, embraced warmly and passed in front of an honour guard before going inside for talks.
In a break with protocol of visiting foreign dignitaries, Bush did not stop at the tomb of Palestinian iconic leader Yasser Arafat inside the Muqata government compound.
Virtual curfew
The Palestinians have put Ramallah under virtual curfew for the visit, with about 4 000 law enforcement officers fanned out across the city and all cars banned.
On Wednesday, Bush held talks with Israeli Prime Minister Ehud Olmert at the start of his first presidential visit to Jerusalem with the goal of advancing peace negotiations revived amid great fanfare six weeks ago.
Bush declared he was "very hopeful" a deal could be sealed by the end of his term next January, saying both sides should build on a "historic opportunity" for peace.
But Bush also launched his tour with an ominous warning to Iran as tensions escalated following a weekend naval confrontation in the Gulf and US charges that the Islamic republic was still seeking nuclear weapons.
Palestinians sceptical
He faces an uphill task to win over the hearts and minds of Palestinians, who are deeply sceptical about his ability to be an even-handed peace broker between America's close ally Israel and the Palestinians.
Peace efforts have been complicated by the split in Palestinian society since Hamas's bloody takeover of the impoverished Gaza Strip in June which has left Abbas in charge only in the West Bank.
After talks with Olmert, Bush warned that violence against Israel from Gaza had to stop before a peace deal aimed at creating an independent Palestinian state can be achieved.
"You can't expect the Israelis, and I certainly don't, to accept a state at their border which will become a launching pad for terrorist activity," he said.
Olmert echoed the sentiment: "Gaza must be part of the package and as long as there will be terror from Gaza it will be very, very hard to reach any peaceful understanding between us and the Palestinians."
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