“What has really happened here? Who invaded who? Who occupied what? What is subject to negotiation? What is the area in dispute? These are new things. I certainly appreciate this stand by the Australian government and I am certain that all those who want to see an agreement here based on peace, justice and truth – and it is impossible to build peace based on historic lies – would agree. There is truth, and it must be embraced. It requires many, many conclusions and steps, but it certainly does not require the sanctification of lies.”
The White House’s cautious approach to Abbas’s unity government, which has caused additional friction with Netanyahu, has prompted much reaction among senior members of the Democratic and Republican parties on Capitol Hill.
Senate Foreign Relations Committee Chairman Robert Menendez (D-NJ) told a gathering of the American Jewish Committee that the PA’s new “two-headed dragon” was in direct violation of American foreign aid laws. The PA currently receives approximately $500 million a year in financial assistance from Congress and the State Department. Menendez warned that he would work to rescind the funding if the PA did not abandon its alliance with Hamas.
Menendez said, “Palestinians must choose between peace with Israel as a Jewish state and a marriage with Hamas, a terrorist organization. U.S. law is explicit on this. We will not provide assistance to a Palestinian government in which Hamas has a role and exercises undue influence. Whatever its alleged role, Hamas will wield power and influence, and Hamas, under our law, is a terrorist organization opposed to a two-state agreement and supported by Iran.”