Sharon - Israel Won't Follow Roadmap

I'm not going to pretend that I know a lot of details about the Israeli / Palestinian issues, particularly as those issues relate to the continued occupations of Gaza (and Israel's "redrawing" of borders). I do know a couple of things, though.

1. Israel has done everything it can do to scuttle the "roadmap to peace".
   
2. Israel continues to ignore UN mandates and resolutions relating to the whole Palestinian situation.

And despite the UN resolutions, Israel has a friend on the Security Council who will reject any and all enforcement of said resolutions - the United States. (Please note that's not a condemnation of the Bush administration per se; prior administrations have ignored the resolutions also.) I will, however, condem the Bush administration for continuing to allow Israel to blatently ignore the plan to which all parties responsible agreed.

To understand Arab animosity to the U.S. government, it's absolutely necessary to have at least a passing knowledge of the issues in the conflict. And this is probably the single largest obstacle in understanding what's going on in this volatile area of the world.

Sharon Doesn't Plan to Follow 'Road Map':

(AP) - Israel will not follow the U.S.-backed 'road map' peace plan and could remain in much of the West Bank for an extended period after it withdraws from the Gaza Strip, Prime Minister Ariel Sharon said in a newspaper interview published Wednesday. Sharon's comments were his most detailed yet on his long-term vision for the region. Palestinian officials said the remarks confirmed their fears that Israel plans to draw its own borders and keep a large chunk of the West Bank, rather than negotiate a peace deal with the Palestinians, as envisioned by the road map...