DOUBLE-SECRET TRUCE

Egyptian mediation extracts a silent consent from Hamas on a Truce (Arabic News, 6/17/2003)

The attempts to reach a "truce" between the Palestinian groups and Israel reached its peak yesterday with the success of the Egyptian delegation in getting a silent approval from Hamas to halt its military operations.

This success came after the Egyptians discussed an "Israeli commitment" with American consent to halt the acts of assassinations for at least 6 months and the Israeli forces starting withdrawal from positions it had occupied after the eruption of the Intifada.

The America moves have intensified recently in more than one direction and channel.

It would be foolish to place much faith in such a truce, but it's not really important to the process that it last all that long. All that matters is the illusion of progress, which provides cover for Mr. Sharon to give Mr. Abbas a state and Mr. Abbas, unlike Yassir Arafat, to accept it. Posted by Orrin Judd at June 18, 2003 7:39 AM