On Jan. 9, Mahmoud Abbas was elected Palestinian leader, replacing former Palestinian leader, Yasser Arafat. He is expected to bring peace between the Israelis and the Palestinians.
“President Abbas dedicated his win to the Leader Arafat, whom he credited with planting ‘the first seed of democracy’ among Palestinians,” said the Palestine news agency Wafa.
The Israelis and Palestinians have been fighting for decades. According to first-year Faris Khader from Palestine, violence has increased while the Israelis build a wall to separate themselves from the Palestinians for the purpose of “protection”.
On Jan. 13, Palestinian extremists led an attack which killed six Israelis. Abbas hoped that the militant groups involved, among them the al-Aqsa Martyr’s Brigade and Hamas, would agree to a cease-fire.
According to BBC World News, Israeli leader Ariel Sharon expressed interest in meeting with the newly-elected Abbas. However, since the attack, the invitation was withdrawn under the ultimatum that Abbas must stop the violence to have the meeting.
“Our new leader has the same aim that all Palestinians have, and that is the freedom to live and practicing our basic rights as human beings,” said Palestinian first-year Yacoub Saad. “We hope that this would bring us to a vision of a better future, overcoming the bitter present that is still full of violence and oppression.”
President Bush informed Abbas that he stands ready to support the Palestinian government. Meanwhile, Abbas reasons with the militant groups and continues to work towards peace.
The Bush administration would like to increase its peace campaign both financially and politically. According to CNN.com, Bush is currently contemplating allowing a $200 million increase in American aid to the Palestinians. Former Secretary of State Colin Powell also pushed for Israel to release Palestinians held prisoner.
According to CNN.com, U.S. Secretary of State delegate Condoleezza Rice is already expecting to help with peace efforts and is beginning to take under consideration a trip to meet with both Palestinian and Israeli leaders,
“I hope the situation will get better and the suffering and blood-shed will end for both,” said Khader.
Palestinian Foreign Minister, Nabil Sha’ath has emphasized the need to alleviate this situation and is pushing for Bush invite both Abbas and Sharon to discuss peace resolutions.