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| Tuesday, 11 January 2005 |
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Abbas election victory stirs hopes for peace talks RAMALLAH, West Bank, Monday (Reuters,AFP) The victory of Mahmoud Abbas in Palestinian elections raised hopes on Monday for reviving talks with Israel after the relative moderate won a landslide in the vote to succeed Yasser Arafat. In another sign of change in the Middle East, a new Israeli government was expected to take office with a mission to give up occupied Gaza, uprooting Jewish settlers for the first time from some land where Palestinians want a state. But any optimism for a new era of diplomacy will still be vulnerable to militants defying Abbas's calls to end armed struggle. Meanwhile, neither Palestinians nor Israelis show room for compromise on fundamental issues behind decades of conflict. Abbas claimed victory on Sunday after exit polls showed he had won 65 percent of the vote in the West Bank, Gaza Strip and East Jerusalem - as big a margin as any been expected. Turnout looked healthy despite a boycott call by Islamic militants, strengthening his mandate for change. He had promised to seek peace with Israel, but also to battle widespread corruption and revive the crumbling Palestinian Authority - the legacy of four years of debilitating violence and Arafat's chaotic rule. "Victory is beautiful but it will be more beautiful to fulfil the pledges," said Abbas, candidate of the dominant Fatah movement. "The smallest jihad (holy struggle) is over and the biggest jihad is ahead." U.S. President George W. Bush praised the election as an essential step to statehood and offered Abbas his help in a new push for peace, while calling on Israel to improve the humanitarian situation for Palestinians. Congressional aides said Bush is considering a proposal to boost U.S. aid to the Palestinians this year by $200 million - a more than twofold increase - to help Abbas prepare for Israel's withdrawal from Gaza. The U.S. money is expected to be tied to Palestinian efforts in stopping violence and carrying out reforms. Meanwhile Israel officials said they hoped the election of Mahmud Abbas, whom exit polls suggested overwhelmingly won the Palestinian presidential election to succeed Yasser Arafat, would usher in a new era of peace. |
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