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March 30, 2008

Israel to Ease Some West Bank Restrictions as Rice Visits Mideast
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http://enews.voanews.com/t?ctl=1BB5A78:A6F02AD83191E1606361678EAA2B46B170AD7039DCD7B7E4& Rice told reporters
in Jerusalem Sunday that she hopes Israelis and Palestinians will be
able to work together to improve both security for Israel as well as
economic viability issues facing Palestinians U.S. Secretary of State
Condoleezza Rice held talks Sunday with Israeli, Palestinian and
Jordanian leaders during her second trip the Middle East in less than
a month.  VOA's Jim Teeple reports from Jerusalem that Israel says it
will ease some restrictions on Palestinians in the West Bank in a bid
to move peace talks forward. 







US Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice, center, Israeli Defense
Minister Ehud Barak, right, and Palestinian Prime Minister Salam
Fayyad, left, are seen during their meeting in Jerusalem, Sunday, 30
March 2008Israel says it will remove about 50 roadblocks in the West
Bank, allow unrestricted access to the West Bank city of Jericho and
ease permit restrictions for some Palestinians who need to travel
through Israeli-controlled territory.  The measures were announced
following talks between Secretary Rice, Israel's Foreign and Defense
Ministers and Palestinian Prime Minister Salam Fayyad in Jerusalem.

Rice says the measures will help move the peace process forward.  

"What we have to have is meaningful progress toward a better life for
the Palestinian people for economic viability for Palestinians, even
as we move toward the establishment of a state," Rice said. "There is
a shared responsibility here for an atmosphere and a reality that can
lead to the establishment of a Palestinian state based on security for
Israelis and Palestinians alike and economic viability for
Palestinians."  Palestinians have pledged to work to improve security
in the West Bank and impose order in the West Bank town of Jenin. 
Last week Israel said it will allow a specially trained force of
police loyal to moderate Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas to travel
to Jenin in an effort to curb militancy there.







U.S. Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice, left, and Israeli Foreign
Minister Tzipi Livni attend a joint press conference in Jerusalem,
Sunday, 30 March 2008

Israeli Foreign Minister Tzipi Livni says Israel wants to cooperate
with moderate Palestinians to improve their economy, but Palestinians
must improve security.

"The formula is to do whatever we can as long as it does not affect
our own security because the other responsibility is to find a way to
give security to Israeli citizens, but I think Israel and the
Palestinians both understand that the Palestinian economy is part of
our interest and Israel's security is part of the Palestinian
interests," Livni said.

Livni also says Israel supports the idea of compensating Israeli
settlers who agree to leave settlements in the West Bank, although she
says the idea still has a long way to go.

Continued Israeli construction activity in settlements in the West
Bank and East Jerusalem has become a major point of contention in the
talks between Israelis and Palestinians - with Palestinians saying
such construction violates existing agreements between the two sides -
and could jeopardize a final peace agreement.  Israel says it will
continue to build in areas it intends to permanently keep as part of
an eventual settlement with the Palestinians.

After her talks with Jordan's King Abdullah and President Abbas in
Amman, Rice returns to Jerusalem for talks Monday with the Israeli and
Palestinian negotiating teams.  She then returns to Amman for a final
consultation with Mr. Abbas. 






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