Palestinian envoy to U.S. 'disappointed' with J Street’s objection to UN bid

Head of the PLO General Mission to the U.S. says Palestinian leadership united on Palestinian statehood issue.

By Natasha Mozgovaya


Maen Rashid Areikat, head of the PLO General Mission to the U.S., told "Haaretz" he is "disappointed" by J Street objection to the Palestinian UN bid, but added he understands their concerns. I am disappointed, because we thought J Street was going to be a different U.S. Jewish organization and play a different role, take a more courageous position, and understand why we are going to the UN, but I understand their reasons. It's obvious they wanted to issue a balanced paper. They also mentioned that they want to see the negotiations resumed, that they want to see the two-state solution. Their position on the UN Security Council resolution on settlements backfired, they were heavily criticized for it. They are in a delicate position and are trying to strike a balanced approach. But having said that, we were accustomed to J Street taking bold positions, that's what differentiated them from other Jewish groups in this country that blindly support Israeli position - they've been objective and reasonable. And they always understood the conflict and looked at it from both angles, urging both sides to work for the conflict solution. I still believe they are an important group, that they have a role to play and they can impact the thinking of the American Jewish community and the general public in this country".

Comment: translation: we thought J-Street would agree with everything we, the enemy of Israel wanted. So, we will now make them feel sorry for themselves that they have let us down, they will respond to our side because they are PC to begin with-it is a long war, not just one battle.