When the talk does not walk

The Globe and Mail carries this feel good article about a press conference held by Palestinian Authority Chairman Mahmoud Abbas gave wherein he stated what would be obvious in the West but is considered to be manna from heaven when Chairman Abbas says it:

Palestinian leader Mahmoud Abbas said Monday he expects Hamas to hand in its weapons after Palestinian elections this summer, but he stopped short of threatening to disarm the Islamic militants by force.

And I quote the horse's mouth:

“When a movement or militia is transformed into a political party, I would say that there will then be no need for them to possess weapons,” Mr. Abbas told reporters. “There will be only one authority, one law, and one legal gun. The issue is very clear, and this has been common practice throughout history.”

What the Globe did not tell you but the Jerusalem Post did is that Chairman Abbas was in Gaza to honour security officials with the Jerusalem Medal and a Kodak moment. Problem was no one would show up to accept it. I assume that Abbas saw no sense letting a photo-ops with the press go to waste. Of course, Hamas didn’t even wait one single news cycle before it issued its denial to the Abbas future vision of their organization and took the time to call the Abbas kettle black:

Hamas leader in the Gaza Strip, Mahmoud Zahar, said in response that Hamas would not agree to disarm. He also called on the Hamas leadership based abroad to return to the territories following Israel's planned withdrawal from the Gaza Strip and northern West Bank on Monday, Israel Radio reported.
(…)
Meawhile, Hamas spokesman Sami Abu Zohri said the group would only disarm when Israel ends its occupation of the West Bank and Gaza, adding that Abbas was in no position to preach to Hamas since he has yet to disarm the armed wing of his own ruling Fatah party. "The resistance is tied to the end of the occupation and not with joining the Palestinian parliament," Abu Zohri said.

What is interesting is the fact that the Globe and Mail made the editorial judgment to include this link as a related story with the headline: West Bank Settlers accused of spreading poison – I guess this meets the G&M’s sense of balance:

Amnesty International called on Israel on Monday to take action against West Bank settlers who it says have been poisoning Palestinians' livestock.Over a period of several weeks, Jewish settlers have spread toxic chemicals on Palestinian fields south of the West Bank city of Hebron, a statement released by the human-rights group said.

The Israeli police confirmed the presence of toxic substances in fields near several West Bank villages but rejected Amnesty's allegations that they do not do enough to prevent settler attacks on Palestinians.“It's not true that the police is doing nothing. We make arrests, and there will be more in the future,” said Shlomi Said,, the police spokesman for the West Bank. “When there is an attack, we arrest them and take them to court.” Mr. Sagi said the police pay extra attention to sensitive areas where settlers and Palestinians routinely clash, assigning more police to patrol the fields. He said there is an investigation into the poisoning incidents.

The Amnesty statement said settler attacks on Palestinians, as well as on international peace activists, have increased in recent months, but the authorities have failed to investigate. Mr. Sagi said at least 10 settlers have been arrested for attacking Palestinian farmers.

Though, if I was the editor I would have linked with this story:

An Israeli reservist was killed when a Palestinian taxi crashed through a checkpoint located on the trans-Judean highway on the Halhoul Bridge north of Hebron on Monday night. The taxi then attempted to flee the site, but soldiers at the checkpoint opened fire, hitting the driver.

Or this one:

Meanwhile, near Itamar in Samaria, a 13-year-old Palestinian handed over a 13-kilogram explosives belt to security forces at a checkpoint. He was handed over to security officials for questioning. Officials believe the explosives belt was to have been used in an attack in Israel.

Or how about this:

Also Monday night, Palestinian gunmen fired a Kassam rocket and a mortar shell towards a Jewish settlement in Gush Katif in the Gaza Strip, Army Radio reported. No one was wounded and no damage was caused in the attack.

Or this:

Kisufim crossing was closed down after Palestinian gunmen fired shots towards an IDF jeep at the site, army officials said.

I personally would have chosen to link to this story:

Leading Hamas figures could return to Gaza after upcoming pullout, Saudi newspaper reports, after Gaza leader Mahmoud al-Zahar calls on them to "return home". Hamas’s prime leadership outside of the Palestinian territories plans to move to the Gaza Strip after a planned Israeli pullout from the territory this summer to boost their political power among the Palestinians, a Saudi newspaper reported on Tuesday.

But that's my two cents.