Palestinian reconciliation between Mecca and Washington [Archives:2007/1029/Opinion]
By: Dr. Abdulaziz Al-Maqaleh
It has been clear that Washington will not approve the Mecca Agreement between Palestinian parties because it does not want the Palestinian blood shedding to stop. America sheds blood in Iraq and Afghanistan and wants it to be shed everywhere across the world to satisfy a buried wish which started to come into existence day after day.
Condoleezza Rice's recent statements do reveal some of the American vagueness and obscurity following to the meeting involving Fatah and Hamas in Mecca's Holy Mosque. Rice tries to say that the agreement reached upon is invalid unless Hamas is excluded from national unity government being described as an extreme organization.
This absolute denial for the Mecca Agreement and forming a national unity government clearly indicates that the American Administration wants the conflicts between Fatah and Hamas to continue and it is ready to fuel these conflicts to serve Israel-the entity that cost America a lot and still as long as it is completely biased to the aggressor, Israel, that rejects the real peace and acts continuously against justice, right, mind and conscience.
It is certain that Arabs, whether pro or against, do not want America to abandon its only love in the Middle East and they further do not expect to receive even a 10 percent of the interest given to Israel; however, they wish America can view the case from interest's eye. Arabs want America to recognize that Palestinians have the right to have their own independent state that can hold their dreams and contain all of them regardless of their political trends and tendencies. Further, they want America to get away from sowing sedition between Palestinian factions who fight for the sake of one issue as this will be in favor of none.
The Mecca agreement was the beginning for Palestinian reconciliation and a new start for a brotherly partnership away from shedding bloods of innocents and strugglers. The result of the agreement was brilliant and the climate of Mecca where feelings of a billion and a half Muslims meet helped to minimize some extravagance and foolishness of some heedless parties. It made them realize they are brothers and they have a common enemy who swallowed lands and people and are ready to gulp what remains.
This reconciliation, if not buried alive by America, will strengthen Palestinians' position in the world and open new doors before the new government, being a unity government and not formed by one party.
Out of Bush's mistakes together with those of other extremists in his administration, America has let in an unprecedented moral and political labyrinth and luckily the publicity machine that used to stand by them has entered a new phase where the circumstances imposed upon it to review its attitudes in order not to be a party involved directly in the mistakes committed by the White House against Arabs in general and Palestinians in particular.
The big question ahead that occupies minds: Which of the two cities will succeed to draw the Palestinian future, Mecca or Washington? Is it Islam and Arabism or treason and surrender? The coming few days are to answer and therein there will be no space for speculations or expectations.
Dr. Abdulaziz Al-Maqaleh is Yemen's prominent poet and intellectual. He is the director of the Yemeni Center for Studies.
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