Sanction Against Palestinian Government Will Be Lifted

In view of the new interim government formed by the president of Palestinian, the Bush administration is ready to lift economic and diplomatic sanction against the government since the new formation does not include the Islamic group Hamas.

Information reaching an Associated Press reporter from the state department pointed out that secretary Rice is expected to make the known the new U.S. policy sometime this week. Accordingly, the pronouncement will correspond with a courtesy visit by Israeli Prime Minister Ehud Olmert, who is expected to be holding talk in Washington later today.

According to the Associated Press staff reporter, Jacob Walles, the U.S. consul-general in Jerusalem said, "that the international aid embargo imposed after Hamas won parliamentary elections last year will no longer apply to Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas's government, and that he expected it to be lifted this week."

In the same report, a senior U.S official, who spoke on condition that his name should not be published, pointed out that any U.S gestures toward Abbas would be "independently of Israel."

This moves would fundamentally bring back U.S policy before Hamas swept legislative elections in 2006, which ended international peacemaking in the area. The Hamas is generally considered as a terrorist organization, thus, making the rest of the international donors to boycott their government.

A reknown and respected economist Salam Fayyad in the West Bank heads the new interim government. He is supported back almost all Western countries.

Hamas now runs Gaza, a place home to an estimated 1.5 million people. Abbas and his moderate Fatah Party now run the West Bank, an area also estimated to home 1.5 million Palestinians.

This spilt cleared the way for the U.S to adopt what is called "West Bank first" in which the West Bank would be used as the model of what the entire Palestinian state could be in the near future. Critics and Europeans opposed to the idea, because it will leaves Palestinians living on the side of Gaza unassisted. Others also say it will leaves the Gaza strip opened to influence from Iran and Syria.

The new government was sworn in by Sunday. Sen. Joseph Biden, a presidential candidate, said on ABC's "This Week." " I think we should be supporting him. I'm confident the Israelis are going to do that, but it's a very difficult situations."

In view of this supports, the Bush administration has impressed on Israel to defreeze on tax revenues collected monthly on behalf of the P.A. As at the time of this report, it is not certain that move could yield the desire outcome. The between slated today between Prime Minister Olmert and key Bush administration's officials would bear the fate of the new government.

In the same development, in New York on Sunday, the Israeli Prime Minister expressed readiness of his country to work with the new government.

Source:

Associated Press, U.S. poised to lift Palestinian embargo, http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20070618/ap_on_go_ca_st_pe/us_mideast_12