Egyptian Says Mideast Peace is Contingent on Israel Recognizing Need of Palestinian Self-rule

The Egyptian Ambassador to Canada, Tahsin, Basheer, said here that full peace will be achieved by Israel only after the Israelis recognize the “need for Palestinian self-rule.” However, the envoy stressed that “Egypt will continue to work toward completing the peace process” started by its late President Anwar Sadat.

Addressing 150 members of the Lakeshore chapter of Rotary International yesterday, Basheer maintained that the Israelis “have a dilemma they must face. They must either incorporate the Palestinians, in which case Israel will not be a Jewish state but a multi-national country, or they could keep the Palestinians” subjugated “and I do not believe the majority of Israelis want this.”

He insisted that “The only solution of the Middle East conflict is for the Israelis and Palestinians to recognize each other. In the rational sense, what do two or three cities on the West Bank mean to Israel ? Each side believes it is entitled to what it has and the other side is its mortal enemy.” Israel’s reward for reaching a settlement with the Palestinians would be recognition by the rest of the Arab world, Basheer said.

He observed that “Israel was created to set an example to the rest of the world and to provide a haven for persecuted Jews. But how can you be that when you’re a persecutor?” He pictured Egypt as the Arab country most responsible for fostering peace in the Middle East. He said Egypt wanted to make the region nuclear free.

In that connection, the envoy claimed that “Israel has created 20-30 little bombs and every country in the Middle East wants little bombs to defend itself.” He noted that Egypt has signed the nuclear non-proliferation treaty and said his country’s task is to “make other Middle Eastern nations feel that making peace with Israel is not a betrayal but on achievement.”