(NEWS) Gaza Bound Convoy's Leader Pleads For Permit To Go Through Egypt

"The leader of 'Viva Palestina 5' Gaza bound convoy George Galloway appealed here on Tuesday to the Egyptian President Husni Mubarak to allow him to enter Egypt.

He made the appeal during a press conference held over the 'Viva Palestina' Gaza bound convoy. 'We have no problem with Egypt, Egypt is not our enemy, our enemy is the Zionist state of Israel,' Galloway said.



On 8 January, Galloway was driven by the Egyptian police to the airport and put on a plane to London. Egyptian Foreign Minister Ahmed Abul Gheit released a statement reading: 'George Galloway is considered persona non grata and will not be allowed to enter Egypt again.'

'We want to focus international opinion on the crimes of Israel. Palestine is in my eyes and my hearts, and I'll be sad if I now have to stay away from it,' he added.

Galloway will lead on Friday, 144 aid vehicles carrying 380 pro- Palestinian activists from some 30 countries to the Syrian Lattakia sea-port and then sail to Egypt.

Viva Palestina movement has organized three massive land convoys to Gaza in the last 18 months, all of which have delivered their aid.

In May, Israel stormed the Gaza-bound aid flotilla, killed nine pro-Palestinian international activists and detained other 700. The assault has sparked a world-wide condemnation and increased calls to end the Gaza blockade.

Israel has been imposing a tight sea and ground blockade on 1.5 million Palestinians in Gaza Strip right after Islamic Hamas movement obtained the vast majority in the 2006 Palestinian legislative elections." (source)

(NEWS) PLO Agrees To Direct Talks With Israel

"The Palestine Liberation Organization (PLO) said early Saturday that it accepted a United States invitation to resume direct peace negotiations with Israel.

The PLO executive committee made the decision after an emergency meeting chaired by Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas on Friday night, the Palestinian state-run news Agency 'Wafa' reported.

'Counting on the international Quartet's statement issued today, the executive committee announces its acceptance to resume the talks to resolve all the permanent status issues and to attend the meeting in Washington on Sept. 2 that U.S. Secretary of State Hilary Clinton called for,' said the PLO said in a statement.

If Israel did not refrain from the complete cessation of all settlement activities in the occupied Palestinian territories, 'it would be threatening the continuation of the direct talks,' the statement warned.

Earlier on Friday, U.S. Secretary of State Hilary Clinton told a news conference that Washington would invite Abbas, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu to Washington on Sept. 2 to resume the direct peace talks.



Israel welcomed Clinton's invitation, while Egyptian President Hosni Mubarak and King Abdullah of Jordan will also be invited to Washington and join the meeting.

Gaza Strip ruling Islamic Hamas movement on Friday rebuffed the U.S. call to launch direct peace talks.

Sami Abu Zuhri, the Gaza-based Hamas spokesman, told Xinhua earlier on Friday: 'We in Hamas reject the American invitation to resume the Israeli-Palestinian negotiations.'

'This call and its consequences won't abide our people in anything,' he said. 'This call is a new attempt to deceive our Palestinian people, because it is useless and will bring us back to zero without achieving any results.'" (source)