Mission & Justice

18/4/08

Jimmy Carter, a former US president, has met Khaled Meshaal, the exiled Hamas leader, in the Syrian capital, despite strong opposition from Tel Aviv and Washington. The controversial meeting was being held at a Hamas office in Damascus and attended by Musa Abu Marzuq and Mohmmed Nazzal, senior figures from the Palestinian movement. Carter arrived in Syria on Friday and held talks with Bashar al-Assad, the Syrian president, before meeting Meshaal. Details on the meeting with al-Assad were not immediately available, but Rick Jafculca, Carter’s spokesman, said that the two men were to discuss the peace process.]

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Akiva Eldar;14/4/08

Former United States president Jimmy Carter, who arrived in Israel Sunday, rejects the criticism he’s been subjected to over his planned meeting with Hamas leader Khaled Meshal. According to Carter, peace cannot be achieved without talking to all the relevant people, and he will use the meeting to promote efforts to release Gilad Shalit and to uncover the fate of soldiers Eldad Regev and Ehud Goldwasser. Carter told Haaretz Sunday in an exclusive interview that he intends to check Meshal’s willingness to accept the Arab League peace initiative. Carter says that acceptance of this plan by Hamas would be a very positive step. Carter said ignoring a large segment of the Palestinian people would make it impossible to achieve peace.

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