White House: Israeli-Palestinian violence 'must stop'

by Mark Silva

President Bush, returning from the weekend at his Texas ranch today – Marine One will land on the South Lawn soon – hopes to reengage the Palestinians and Israels in peace talks that have broken down over missile attacks from Hamas and air-strikes by the Israelis.

In a meeting with the National Association of Attorneys General today – following a briefing by U.S. Att’y Gen. Michael Mukasey, Bush will be focusing on the surveillance legislation that he is trying to get through Congress. The White House has gotten 21 of the states’ attorneys general to sign a letter in support of Bush's plan, which includes legal immunity for telecommunications companies assisting the government in secret surveillance of suspected terrorists.

Bush also will meet with Lt. Gen. Ray Odierno, former commander of the Mltinational Corps Iraq, now commanding general at Fort Hood, Texas.

In the East Room today, Bush also will award the Medal of Honor posthumously to Army Master Sgt. Woodrow Keeble, who the final allied offensive of the Korean War, risked his life to save others. Twenty six years after his death, Keeble will become the first full-blooded Sioux Indian to receive the Medal of Honor.

But it is the hope for Middle East peace which stands in great doubt today.

“We have a clear message,’’ said Gordon Johndroe, spokesman for the National Security Council, aboard Air Force One today en route from Texas to the White House. “The Palestinian people have a choice to make. It's a choice between terrorism, or a choice between a political solution that leads to a Palestinian state living side by side in peace and security with Israel.

“The number one thing that has to happen is Hamas has got to stop targeting Israeli citizens with rockets,’’ he said. “ It must stop. The parties then need to get back to the negotiating table and have discussions. Ultimately, it is in the best interest of the Palestinian people and their future, and also in the best interest of the Israelis and the whole region, for these two parties to have discussions that leads to a peaceful settlement.’’

Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice is returning to the Middle East today, where Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas has suspended talks with Israel in the midst of renewed fighting over the Gaza Strip.

“President Abbas had said that he suspended talks,’’ Johndroe said. “We obviously want these talks to resume as soon as possible. I think that's something that Secretary Rice will take up with President Abbas, as well as other leaders in the region.

Asked if President Bush believes that Israel has used “disproportionate force,’’ Johndroe said: “Look, we obviously don't want any innocent civilians to lose their life, but I think that started with these rockets that have been fired from Gaza into Israel, recently killing and injuring Israeli citizens in some of their bigger cities.

“So they've had… a barrage of rockets fired out of Hamas for some time now, and now Hamas escalated it, firing larger rockets longer-range and killing people,’’ he said. “ And so that's got to stop.’’

So the answer is no?

“The answer is the stated. ‘’

And what about that stated goal of achieving the outlines of the map of two independent states, and a prospect for peace, by year’s end?

”We're going to keep on,’’ Johndroe said. “We're going to keep after it.

Asked about the U.S. military air-strike at a target inside Somalia, he said: “Look, the United States is going to go after al Qaeda and al Qaeda-affiliated operatives wherever we find them. They are plotting and planning all over the world to destabilize the world, to inflict terror, and where we find them, we are going to go after them.’’