Just hours after blaming Hamas
and other terror groups for the lack of peace in the region, visiting
US Secretary of State Hillary Clinton signaled that while it may
recognize the source of the obstruction, that won't stop the Obama
Administration from pushing for the rapid creation of a Palestinian
Arab state.
Clinton told reporters in Jerusalem that she and President
Barack Obama plan to be "vigorously engaged" in bringing about the
birth of "Palestine," adding that "there is no time to waste."
That is likely to put Clinton and Obama at odds with incoming
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, who has refused to commit to
the establishment of a sovereign Palestinian state, and instead wants
to focus on bettering the economic conditions under which the
Palestinian Arabs live.
Netanyahu met with Clinton on Tuesday, and indicated in remarks
to the press that the two had found some common ground. However, few
expect relations between the Obama and Netanyahu governments to be
smooth.
On Wednesday Clinton all but guaranteed that her government
will clash with Netanyahu's when she suggested in a joint press
conference with Palestinian leader Mahmoud Abbas that for Washington,
the division of Jerusalem is a foregone conclusion.
Speaking to reporters in Ramallah, Clinton said she was not
pleased with the Jerusalem municipality's plans to demolish 80 Arab
homes on the city's eastern side that were built without proper
permits.
"Clearly this kind of activity is unhelpful and not in keeping
with the obligations entered into under the 'road map'," said Clinton.
"It is an issue that we intend to raise with the government of Israel
and the government at the municipal level in Jerusalem."
Israel, of course, officially rejected those parts of the "road
map" peace plan that attempted to equate Israel's sovereignty over the
eastern half of Jerusalem to its settlement-building activity in the
rest of Judea and Samaria.
Clinton's remarks suggested that the Obama administration does
not recognize Israeli sovereignty over the eastern half of Jerusalem
any more than it does in the so-called "West Bank."
Observers argued that she also legitimized lawlessness on the
part of eastern Jerusalem's Arab populations by suggesting that they
are not subject to the authority of the Jerusalem municipality.
In related news, Jerusalem police officials confirmed to
WorldNetDaily and Israel National News this week that Palestinian
Authority police forces are being permitted to operate on the outskirts
of the Israeli capital.
Israeli police have given Palestinian police the green light to
take over public security in Arab villages and neighborhoods on the
eastern edges of Jerusalem, and Israeli Jews have been warned to now
steer clear of those areas.
A growing number of Israeli politicians, including Avigdor
Lieberman of the supposedly ultra-right-wing Israel Beiteinu Party,
have of late embraced the idea of surrendering the Arab areas of
eastern Jerusalem to the Palestinian Authority.