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Middle East Talks? Doomed at Birth

As there is talk in the media about some sort of resolution of the present stand-off between the Israelis and the USA with respect to the on-going building and expansion of settlements by the Israelis - as well starting up, yet again, talks between the Israelis and Palestinians - Seth Freedman, writing from Israel in "Obama’s Middle East breakthrough? Dream on" on The First Post, says there is more than considerable reason for scepticism:

"News of Barack Obama's apparent breakthrough in the Middle East peace process makes for great copy, but the announcement's beauty is only skin deep. His 'success' simply amounts to having forced Prime Minister Netanyahu to agree to a freeze in settlement construction as a means to get both sides - Israelis and Palestinians - to the negotiating table.

While any kind of concession on the part of the hardline Israeli government must be seen as a positive sign, past form is the best guide as to how the latest round of peace talks will ultimately pan out.

Successive Israeli, Palestinian and international politicians have come, seen, and failed to conquer the seemingly insurmountable obstacles on the path to a true and lasting resolution to the conflict. Despite all the fanfare surrounding Obama's attempts at bridging the gulf between the two sides, the fact that Netanyahu has dug his heels in so hard at the first hurdle - settlement construction - indicates the near impossible task that lies ahead.

Obama squeezing a temporary cessation to settlement building like blood from a stone does not augur well for the far more serious items on the agenda.

According to Israeli officials, the Palestinian right of return is out of the question, likewise the suggestion to divide Jerusalem and give the eastern half to the Palestinians as their capital. Yet both issues are of sacrosanct importance to the Palestinian people, and any offer falling short on those fronts will see today's optimism quickly fizzle out once again."

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