BBC silent on PA rejection of direct negotiations

In recent months the BBC has repeatedly told its audiences that the current wave of terror attacks against Israelis is the result of the lack of progress on the diplomatic front.

“Violence does not come out of the blue. It has a context. Once again, the problem is the unresolved conflict between Palestinians and Jews. It is at the heart of all the violence that shakes this city.” (Jeremy Bowen, BBC News website, 15/10/2015)

“The current violence stems from decades of unresolved conflict between Israel and the Palestinians. At its most basic, it is a fight over land and national rights. […]

Peace talks aimed at ending the conflict by creating a Palestinian state alongside Israel have repeatedly collapsed over the years and many on both sides have lost faith in the process.” (BBC News website, 22/10/2015)

“On the Palestinian side there is a persistent sense of resentment at continuing Israeli occupation which is intensified not just by the circumstances around the al-Aqsa compound but also by the widespread sense that the whole issue of the two-state solution has been allowed to drift off the international agenda.

It is hard to remember a time when so little diplomatic effort was put into the search for a solution to the long-running issue between Israel and the Palestinians.” (Kevin Connolly, BBC News website, 5/10/2015)

The most recent example of that messaging was seen in a BBC News website article dated February 18th.

“The recent rise in violence is blamed by Palestinians on the continued occupation by Israel of the West Bank and the failure of the Middle East peace process.”

This week news broke concerning a statement relating to the topic of negotiations made by the PA’s Foreign Minister Riyad al Malki whilst on a visit to Japan together with the PA’s President.BBC brick wall

“In a striking rejection of relentless international efforts to broker new talks, Palestinian Authority Foreign Minister Riyad al-Malki said Monday that the Palestinians will “never” return to direct negotiations with Israel.

Peace talks collapsed in April 2014 and since then, the situation has deteriorated, with the prospects of fresh dialogue appearing more remote than ever. But Malki said that one-on-one talks with Israel were out of the question.

“We will never go back and sit again in a direct Israeli-Palestinian negotiations,” Malki told a press conference.”

To date, however, the BBC has avoided informing its audiences that a senior PA official has publicly rejected the possibility of renewing direct negotiations aimed at bringing an end to the conflict which Palestinian officials – and the BBC – claim is the cause of the current wave of violence.

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