Word: meccas
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Dates: during 2000-2009
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Palestinians may still be celebrating the Mecca accord reached between rival factions of Hamas and Fatah to form a national unity government, but there is no such sentiment coming out of Washington. "Peace is not at hand," a senior U.S. official said today. But while the Bush Administration may view the deal as a setback for the prospects of Middle East peace, many observers think it is really a setback for U.S. influence in the region - especially its goal of isolating Hamas...
...face, the agreement signed in Mecca between Palestinian president Mahmoud Abbas of the Fatah party and Khaled Meshal of Hamas, falls far short of the principles of the international mediating group known as the Quartet, composed of the U.S., United Nations, European Union and Russia, that a unity government must recognize Israel, reject violence and commit itself to the peace process. The Mecca talks, convened by Saudi King Abdullah, resulted in a Hamas pledge to "respect" previous Palestinian agreements to engage in peace talks with Israel. But Hamas leaders pointedly did not embrace Quartet demands that they concede Israel...
...Former U.S. Ambassador to Israel Martin Indyk, now director of the Brookings Institutions' Saban Center for Middle East Policy, argues that the Mecca accord is a "considerable embarrassment" for Rice and a setback for her hopes of brokering Israeli-Palestinian talks that will lay the groundwork for the establishment of a peaceful Palestinian state. State Department officials said today that Rice still plans to travel to Jerusalem Feb. 19 for Israeli-Palestinian-U.S. trilateral talks with Abbas, [popularly known as Abu Mazen] and Israeli President Ehud Olmert...
...must crush them no matter what they say in Mecca," shouted one man, who had lost a brother in the fighting. An official quickly hushed him, but during the outburst, several of his comrades murmured their approval for revenge...
...fortification and rearming of Fatah forces from outside - most graphically visible in the form of four recently arrived armored personnel carriers -is a sign that Abbas and Dahlan are not counting on the Mecca talks succeeding...