JERUSALEM, 19 June 2006 — Israeli Prime Minister Ehud Olmert yesterday rejected calls for an international inquiry into a blast on a Gaza beach nearly two weeks ago in which eight Palestinians were killed.
“We will never agree to become subject to an investigation by international bodies,” Olmert told ministers during a weekly Cabinet meeting. Israel denied any responsibility after the deadly June 9 incident in which seven members of the same family were killed while picnicking on the beach in the northern Gaza Strip. An internal military inquiry into the incident, ordered by Defense Minister Amir Peretz, absolved Israel of any involvement.
But Palestinians and international bodies insist the blast was caused by an Israeli shell, as the Israeli Army regularly bombards northern Gaza in an effort to stop Palestinian rocket fire. Despite the criticism, Olmert rejected calls for an international inquiry although he has previously expressed regret for the civilian deaths.
Abbas Seeks Arab Help
Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas said yesterday that he was rallying Arab nations to block an Israeli plan to redraw its borders unilaterally, and instead implement the US-backed road map that envisions a Palestinian state.
Israeli Prime Minister Ehud Olmert has proposed drawing a West Bank border if negotiations with the Palestinians fail. Arabs, including Palestinians, fear the plan would alienate Palestinian towns and increase hardship there — driving many to neighboring Arab states, including Jordan.
“We are working now and consolidating our contacts with Arab countries to distance Olmert’s plan from the table and solidify the road map as a basis for negotiations and dialogue,” Abbas told reporters after meeting Jordan’s King Abdallah.
In a separate message to Palestinians, Abdallah called for an end to feuding between Abbas’ Fatah faction and Hamas, which holds a majority in the Palestinian Parliament.
Abdallah later arrived in the Egyptian resort of Sharm El-Sheikh, where he discussed with Egyptian President Hosni Mubarak “certain Arab differences” and Cairo’s efforts to resolve them. Mubarak is due to meet his Syrian counterpart Bashar Assad tomorrow, official sources said.
Chinese Premier Wen Jiabao, who also met Mubarak in Cairo, said Beijing’s wooing of African and Latin American countries in a bid to expand trade and energy cooperation posed no threat to US interests.
Rockets Fired at Israel
Three rockets were fired late yesterday at Israel from the Gaza Strip, bringing to nine the number of rockets fired over the course of the day, an Israeli military source said.
