Wednesday, December 7, 2005
This is nothing surprising. So many people continue to trumpet their cooperative efforts -- efforts which continue to go completely unreciprocated by the Palestinian Arab establishment -- who, in fact, continue to punish anyone who has the audacity to challenge the enforced Palestinian "national concensus." You would think that the Palestinians would have far more to lose than the Israelis, and they do, yet there is never a price to be paid. This is a people ready for peace? It's not promising.
Haaretz: Palestinian soccer union plans to punish 'Peace Team' players
A 'Peace Team' of Israeli and Palestinian players lost 2-1 to Barcelona at the Nou Camp last week in front of 31,820 spectators, including many dignitaries.
"The Palestinian FA will form a committee to investigate the players who participated in the match ... everyone involved will be punished," senior FA official Jamal Zaqout told Reuters.
"We act in accordance with the attitude of our people who are against normalization (of relations with Israel) before the end of the occupation," Zaqout said, referring to Israel's hold over lands captured in the 1967 Middle East war.
Fifteen Israelis, including many internationals and 12 Palestinians from the occupied West Bank joined up for the match sponsored by Israeli statesman Shimon Peres' Center for Peace foundation...
I thought the PA recognized Israel's right to exist even though they refuse to crack down on the militants who do suicide bombings there.
Why is this team for peace even a problem?
Boy is that a big question (assuming it's not just rhetorical). The very short answer is because they pay lip-service to accepting Israel, but their actions and everything else -- from their glorification of suicide bombers to their printing of maps without Israel on them to the policies of rejection and non-cooperation that are enforced by their governmental and civil authorities -- show their true intentions. Some even insist that the PLO's charter was never actually amended.