ABU ALA'A SAYS NEGOTIATIONS REQUIRE DEFINED

C O N F I D E N T I A L JERUSALEM 001932 SIPDIS NEA FOR FRONT OFFICE AND IPA. NSC FOR SHAPIRO/KUMAR E.O. 12958: DECL: 01/22/2024 TAGS: PGOV PREL PTER PHUM KPAL KWBG IS SUBJECT: ABU ALA'A SAYS NEGOTIATIONS REQUIRE DEFINED BORDERS, SETTLEMENT FREEZE Classified By: Consul General Daniel Rubinstein, per reasons 1.4 (b) an d (d) ¶1. (C) Summary. Negotiations cannot resume while settlement activity continues, Palestinian negotiator Ahmad Quraya' (Abu Ala'a) told the Consul General in an October 20 meeting. Abu Ala'a urged the USG to play a strong third-party role in order to prevent negotiations from back-sliding to pre-Annapolis positions. He said that defining borders as part of a two-state solution would help resolve other permanent status issues. He asked the Consul General to look into tax exemptions for U.S.-based organizations that fund settlement activity. On reconciliation, Abu Ala'a said that Hamas is unwilling to compromise because it is content to rule Gaza. End Summary. SETTLEMENT GROWTH A "FUNDAMENTAL AND STRATEGIC PROBLEM" FOR NEGOTIATIONS -------------- ¶2. (C) During a meeting with the Consul General on October 20, PLO Executive Committee member and former Fatah Central Committee member and Palestinian negotiator Ahmad Quraya' (Abu Ala'a) said that negotiations cannot resume while settlement activity continues. Abu Ala'a called settlement expansion a "fundamental and strategic problem." The Oslo agreements, he explained, "specified that there would be 'no unilateral actions the prejudge the outcome.' (The Israelis) need to stop." He said that settlement growth calls into question the GOI's willingness to recognize a future Palestinian state and threatens to adversely affect prospects for negotiating borders. ¶3. (C) Abu Ala'a said that he sensed a shift in the GOI's perspective under PM Netanyahu. Recounting his negotiating experience from 2008, he said, "I worked with (then-Israeli Foreign Minister Tzipi) Livni, and our position was that we could talk about any (permanent status issues). We all started with a recognition that the Palestinian lands were occupied in 1967 -- the West Bank, the Gaza Strip, the Jordan Valley, the Dead Sea, and East Jerusalem. (The new Israeli government) sees the West Bank as 'liberated.' We cannot have a two-state solution without recognizing where the two states are. We need to define the borders. Once we do that, all other issues become resolvable. Without defining these borders, negotiations will be fruitless." NEGOTIATIONS REQUIRE STRONG USG ROLE -------------- ¶4. (C) Abu Ala'a said, "Bilateral negotiations have not yielded results. Israelis and Palestinians know each other too well. We know each other's positions, and fall-back positions." He told the Consul General that the USG needs to play a strong third-party role to prevent the negotiations from back-sliding to pre-Annapolis positions. "Fatah has changed its position over time; we have made compromises," he said. "(Israelis and Palestinians) need to agree on the status of the land in order to make progress on any other issues," he said. ISSUE OF US-BASED ORGANIZATIONS FUNDING SETTLEMENTS -------------- -------------- ¶5. (C) Abu Ala'a said that Palestinians cannot accept the growth of settlements that separate East Jerusalem from the West Bank. He gave the Consul General a copy of an article by Uri Blau and Nir Hasson, published in Israeli daily Haaretz newspaper on August 17, entitled "American Non-profit Organization Raises Funds for Settlement," and asked the USG to review the situation with an eye toward eliminating organizations' tax exempt status if they are funding settlement activity. Abu Ala'a expressed concerned about Israeli press reports that Israel and the USG had reached an agreement on settlements. HAMAS CONTENT TO RULE GAZA, UNWILLING TO COMPROMISE -------------- -------------- ¶6. (C) Regarding Palestinian reconciliation, Abu Ala'a said that Hamas is unwilling to make any concessions because they are "comfortable in the Gaza Strip. They have a state! Hamas is happy with the current situation." He said that in his experience, Hamas leaders were savvy politicians and very difficult to work with. He warned that Hamas would like to see its authority expand, which could threaten Fatah and the Palestinian Authority. RUBINSTEIN