THE Palestinian Prime Minister Ismail Haniya has told the Italian daily, Corriere della Sera on August 20 – ‘How can anyone talk of peace if they even cut off the electric power supply to our homes?’
He was referring to the EU and its decision to cut fuel supplies to the Gaza power station because Hamas refused to recognise Israel and refused to give up its national liberation struggle.
Haniya added: ‘We have clearly stated on more than one occasion that we would like to see a Palestinian state recognised within the borders of the lands occupied in 1967. If Israel accepts that opportunity, then we are ready to propose a truce lasting for decades and decades.
He was asked: ‘Why do you not add, rather, that at the end of the hudna it will be possible for there to be two states living in full, peaceful coexistence? Haniya replied: ‘There is no point in anticipating history. Why rush ahead? The PLO recognised Israel in the past, but it served no purpose.
‘Today the number of Jewish settlements on the West Bank is on the rise, and Jerusalem is being increasingly occupied and its Arab population is suffering from more and more discrimination. In reality, Israel has never accepted a Palestinian state on the 1967 borders either politically or geographically.’
Haniya also commented on Romano Prodi’s recent overtures to Hamas. ‘They are excellent. We welcome Prodi. His is a balanced approach that recognises Hamas and the full value of our election victory in January 2006. We are a flexible, democratic partner; we are the true expression of Palestinian grassroots will. We cannot be ignored or ostracised. And we are very interested in keeping a dialogue with Europe open. Hamas can become the bridgehead in the relationship between the Arab world, Europe, and Italy. I call on Prodi to help us to cancel the embargo. With his assistance this region could truly become peaceful for decades.’
Haniya then commented on the platform for a peace conference featuring Bush, Olmert the Israeli Premier and Mahmud Abbas the Palestinian president which is due to be held in Washington in November.
He said: ‘ I believe that the conference in the United States will have no concrete relevance. It will just be a small good-bye party ahead of the end of the Bush presidency. And in any case, Abu-Mazen (Abbas) does not have any mandate to decide independently on the Palestinians’ future. I want to state that it was not us who sparked the clash in Gaza, but Fatah and its armed gangs who were bent on violence in order to bury the result of the democratic election.
‘Now they are doing the same thing on the West Bank. They are arresting or killing our militants. It is a very dangerous situation which is in danger of deteriorating. Only our denigrators see a link between us and Al-Qaeda. In actual fact there is no relationship at all.’
Haniya emphasised: ‘Hamas has only one enemy: Israeli occupation. And in any case, all of our actions are geared towards Palestine. Our methods and our objectives have nothing in common with those of Al-Qaeda.
Haniya answered the accusation made by Fatah, that Hamas was impounding the oil for the generators that produce Gaza’s electric power and that this was an affront to the European Union, which foots at least one-fourth of the bill.
He protested: ‘That is false! On the contrary, the fuel shortage and the failure of the generators is something sought by Fatah to put us in difficulty. It is a very serious thing indeed. To resolve it, I appeal once again to Prodi: Why does he not send in an Italian commission to investigate? We are very ready to welcome it. They would understand at once that certain mafiosi linked to Fatah are behind this, which is one of the most difficult crises for the people of Gaza.’
Meanwhile the Palestinian Government led by Ismail Haniya has announced that it has started taking legal measures regarding the corruption affair in the Electricity company and those involved in it.
In its weekly meeting in Gaza, the government affirmed that it continues to take legal measures and investigate the complaints filed by the Executive Force members against the Palestinian branch of the Islamic Bank which illegally froze their bank accounts.
The government said Palestinian figures are involved in the conspiracy to cut off the electricity supply to Gaza. It said these figures ‘disseminate false news which are part of the political bickering and blackmail. There are no political or security justifications for not resuming the fuel supply to the Gaza Strip.’
It called on the EU to set up a commission of inquiry ‘to ascertain the falseness of the arguments cited to halt the fuel imports.’ The government also discussed the Executive Force’s efforts to consolidate security in the Gaza Strip and the decisions taken to maintain security and public order, improve its performance, and bolster the rule of law. It affirmed its adherence to liberties, particularly political, information, and social ones, including the right to demonstrate in accordance with the law.
The government was briefed about the measures the Interior Ministry is adopting, especially with regard to the establishment of the Internal Security Department that will start working in the next few days as well as current moves to establish a coastal police that will preserve the security of the citizens and summer vacationists, prevent smuggling, and protect the seacoast.
The government also discussed the intensive preparations to open the new school year and ways to develop the education process, schools, and teachers. It also tackled ways to improve the performance of municipalities, particularly the Gaza Municipality, in a way that will serve the Palestinian public.
Palestinians on the Gaza Strip have been bombed and blitzed by the Israelis, then they had to face the anti-Hamas blockade by the US, and the EU and the threat of starvation, and now they face a conspiracy to remove their electrical power.
However they have refused to give in to all of these threats to their existence and continue to support the Hamas government, and the struggle for a Palestinian state with East Jerusalem as its capital, without settlements and with refugees having the right to return.
• The EU resumed payment yesterday for fuel shipments to the only power plant in the Gaza Strip on a provisional basis. The EU cut off funding last Thursday because of concerns over alleged plans by Hamas, which controls Gaza, to tax electricity bills. Hamas has insisted that it had no such plans.
The EU decision, which was supported by President Abbas, left hundreds of thousands of Palestinians without electricity. Three fuel trucks crossed from Israel into Gaza at the Nahal Oz crossing and headed to the power plant.
The resumption of fuel-aid payments to Gaza comes after EU officials held a meeting with the Abbas-appointed Palestinian Prime Minister, Salam Fayyad, in the West Bank. In a statement the European Commission said it had agreed with Mr Fayyad that audits would be carried out to ensure that ‘fuel aid in Gaza remains properly managed’. A joint committee of the EU and the Palestinian Authority has been set up to monitor fuel delivery.
