Israeli Officials, Pro-Israel World Angered by Vatican Recognition of ‘Palestine’
Israeli officials and supporters of the Jewish state world-wide have expressed outrage at the Vatican’s recognition of the ‘state of Palestine.’ The recognition comes within the context of a treaty concerning the activities of the Catholic Church in the Palestinian territories. Previous versions identified the Vatican’s diplomatic representation as the Palestine Liberation Organization (PLO). Despite the reaction from the pro-Israel world, the Church insists recognizing the state of Palestine is nothing new and is consistent with its position for at least the past year. Meanwhile, thousands of Palestinians turned out in Ramallah on Wednesday to commemorate what they call the “Naqba” (catastrophe): the creation of the state of Israel and the subsequent fleeing of Palestinians from areas that were to become the Jewish state. The theme of the mass rally was that Jerusalem must be “returned to its people despite Israeli plans to ‘Judaize’ it,” according to the Ma’an news agency. Addressing the assemblage, PLO Executive Committee member Zakariya Al-Agha reiterated the PLO’s decision to “stop all forms of negotiations [with Israel] until settlement is stopped, a reference to an international peace process, a timeline to end the occupation is provided and the release of prisoners.”
Yemen Truce Takes Hold despite Saudi Claims of Houthi Violations
After seven weeks of aerial bombing of targets in Yemen by a coalition of air forces led by Saudi Arabia, a 5-day truce has taken effect sufficiently for aid to be delivered to those in need. The Saudi news agency alleged numerous violations by the Iranian-backed Shiite Houthis but pledged that the coalition it leads will abide by the truce nevertheless. On Wednesday, the Saudis claimed artillery and rockets fired from the northern Yemen landed inside of its territory but that the Kingdom’s forces “acted with restraint.” The death toll since bombing started stands at about 1,500.
Little Hope President Obama will Convince Gulf States of Iran Policy
Observers see little hope that President Obama will succeed in convincing representatives of the Gulf States of the wisdom of his policies toward Iran when he hosts them at Camp David on Thursday. The president is expected to offer the Gulf allies additional military aid but not backtrack on the US refusal to negotiate a full defense treaty. President Obama suffered a set-back when Saudi Arabia’s King Salman announced at the last minute that he had decided not to make the trip to Washington. The president met instead with members of the royal family, but the snub was already apparent.
Israeli Parliament Removes Limit on Ministries Creating More Political Currency
The Israeli parliament approved Prime Minister Netanyahu’s request to remove limits on the size of his government in order to provide him with additional political currency with which to weave a coalition government. During his previous tenure, Netanyahu limited the cabinet to 18 ministers. But following his re-election, it became an issue among members of the prime minister’s own Likud party who complained that the key governmental positions were distributed to other parties as enticement to enter the coalition leaving them only with “left-overs.” Netanyahu’s critics point to his first term of office in 1996 when he drew praise from across the political spectrum for breaking the trend of expanding the government by creating limits. This time, he drew fire from opposition members for claiming the cost of adding ministries would be negligible. The government is set to be sworn in on Thursday.
ICC Warns Israel to Cooperate or Rely Only on Palestinian Claims
The chief prosecutor of The International Criminal Court at The Hague has warned Israel that if it fails to cooperate with her requests pursuant to Palestinian charges of war crimes she might decide to open a full investigation and base its findings solely on the Palestinian version of events. The Israelis reacted angrily, arguing that because the Palestinian plaintiffs are not a bona fide state the ICC lacks jurisdiction over the case altogether. In January, the chief prosecutor decided to open what she termed a “preliminary examination” to decide whether the ICC has jurisdiction, but Israel insisted at the time that even that was premature and unwarranted.