BICOM

Revelations from the 1600 Palestinian Authority documents leaked to al-Jazeera and the Guardian are currently setting the agenda in Israeli-Palestinian affairs. Debate is continuing both regarding the veracity of the documents and the implications of the revelations in them, if they are genuine. Commenting on the leaks yesterday, US State Department Spokesman Philip Crowley said that nothing revealed in the papers so far changes the US Administration’s understanding of what is at stake and what needs to be done. Among the latest revelations are an expressed willingness by the Palestinians to limit the number of Palestinian refugees who would enter Israel under the framework of a permanent status accord to 10,000 over 10 years. There is also a statement by then-foreign minister Tzipi Livni suggesting support for a land swap between Israel and the Palestinian state to be established, which would have seen Israeli-Arab villages passing over to Palestinian control.

The documents have yet to be independently verified by sources other than the news organisations releasing them, and a number of commentators have expressed skepticism regarding their veracity, noting that Qatar, which finances the al-Jazeera channel, is known to be sympathetic to the Palestinian opposition and to Hamas. Palestinian Authority President Mahmoud Abbas yesterday accused the channel of ‘distortion’, saying that the documents deliberately confused Israeli and Palestinian negotiating positions. Senior PA official Yasser Abed Rabbo also yesterday accused al-Jazeera of fabrication and distortion. Two-hundred protestors gathered outside the Ramallah offices of al-Jazeera yesterday to protest against the channel.

Israel has made no official statement to confirm or deny the veracity of the documents, but officials have noted that the documents also contain details of a plan containing large scale concessions which was offered by then-prime minister Ehud Olmert, which was also rejected by the Palestinian side.

Further Reading – BICOM Briefing: The Palestine Papers