|
London: Former British prime minister Tony Blair on Thursday returned to address Britain’s House of Parliament on the Mideast, stressing that “a period of calm” in the region is imperative for peace talks to progress.
Now the envoy to the Quartet of Middle East peacemakers, Blair insisted that Bush can help push through a peace deal before his term ends in January.
He said: “We have to alter the current state of events fundamentally. What we need to do is to get a period of calm, to get a ceasefire in Gaza, progressively to start reopening the crossings, start to get proper humanitarian help through.”
Only if this is achieved, he said, will the situation in Gaza and the security of its people improve.
Blair continued to insist that United States President George W Bush’s plans to broker a peace deal by the end of the year will come through.
It may significantly hurt the situation to delay brokering a peace deal, he said.
He also added that he will not visit the region until he is able to help and not harm the talks. He said is waiting to see how the talks progress before "choosing a moment to help".
Meanwhile, in the Gaza Strip Hamas has taken over a Gaza aid agency sponsored by Blair.
Hamas gunmen seized control the Palestinian Water Authority in Gaza, sealing the group’s control of the region, and possibly hindering Blair’s plans for the region and his assurance that a Palestine-Israel peace deal could be signed this year.
|
