NEWS: Sharon: Road Map is at Dead End, page 1

Israeli Prime Minister Ariel Sharon admits that Israel is no longer following the "Road Map" that was introduced in June of 2003. Instead they are carrying out their own plan, which they see as more beneficial, and realistic. Sharon has called the Gaza pullout a "unilateral disengagement plan" which shows their intent to act alone in this manner.

www.sfgate.com
Prime Minister Ariel Sharon acknowledged that Israel was not following the moribund Mideast peace plan and said an Israeli pullout from the Gaza Strip was unlikely to revive it, according to a newspaper interview published Wednesday.

Neither the Israelis nor the Palestinians have met their commitments under the Mideast peace plan, known as the "road map," which collapsed amid continuing violence shortly after it was introduced in June 2003. The United States, the European Union, the United Nations and Russia back the plan, and while there has been no progress in the past year, no one has been willing to publicly declare the road map dead.

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It appears as if Israel has completely given up the Quartet's plan for resolving the issue in the Middle east, and feels that it has to act in it's own best interest. These statements by Sharon should come as no surprise, since other Israeli efforts, such as the Separation Barrier, are well underway and were never mentioned in the "Road Map."

Sharon stated that while Israel would be pulling out of Gaza, they would be strengthening their hold on the settlements in Judea and Samaria (The West bank of the Jordan river). Palestinian negotiator Saeb Erekat said that Sharon's comments only confirmed their fears.

[edit on 16-9-2004 by dbates]