"Israel faces a choice between Gaza and the West Bank, between Hamas and President Abbas"
"I call upon all the Israeli parties, make up your minds about the future, stop arguing about the past"
The President of the State of Israel, President Shimon Peres, opened the Globes Israel Business Conference in a special on stage interview with senior CNN presenter Richard Quest. President Peres addressed the major issues of the day including the peace process with the Palestinians, the building in E1 and Hamas in Gaza.
President Peres addressed Khaled Mashaal's visit to Gaza and said, "He unmasked the real nature of Hamas; a terrorist organization committed to killing and to conquering and opposed to compromise. There is no doubt that his intention is war and murder while the people of Gaza need economic prosperity. Israel faces a choice between Gaza and the West Bank, between Hamas and President Abbas. The alternative to Hamas is Abbas, he is a serious man who has declared himself in favor of peace and compromise, of a demilitarized Palestinian state and against terror. He declared that there wouldn't be a Palestinian state in his hometown of Safed. He is for the two-state solution. We have two clear choices, nobody is perfect but one is right and the other is wrong. We have two choose between Mashaal and Abbas."
President Peres addressed the building in E1 and said, "There have been so many announcements on E1, that's already in the past. In the blocs that we will decide in the future we have to decide will E1 be in the blocs or not. We should draw the lines on the map and the principles are quite clear."
President Peres addressed the lack of progress in peace talks and said, ""We have a choice; either to sink in the past and debate what happened, who was wrong, who said what or to say that's it, let's face to the future, namely how to implement a two state solution. The basis is clear, we have to make a choice. Take the issue of settlements, there are three blocs of Israeli settlements in the West Bank and we shall compensate Palestinians with land somewhere else." President Peres spoke directly to the political parties in Israel and said, "I call upon all the Israeli parties, make up your minds about the future, stop arguing about the past. We must look forward and make a decision."
photo Silvia Golan
