West Bank attacks diminish hopes after summit

Hopes for easing tensions between Israel and Palestine following a security summit of the two sides with Jordan, Egypt and the United States have been dampened by settlers' attacks on Feb 26 in the occupied West Bank and remarks from Israeli officials.

Three people died and more than 100 were injured in renewed violence soon after the five parties in Jordan stated their readiness to work to end unilateral measures for a period of three to six months – though with the disagreement of some Palestinian factions.

Hundreds of Israeli settlers attacked Palestinians, shot one dead and injured many after a Palestinian gunman killed two Israeli brothers in a drive-by shooting. Both were residents of the Jewish settlement of Har Bracha, south of Nablus city in the West Bank. Many shops and homes in Palestinian villages were subsequently set on fire. The Palestinian Red Crescent Society in the West Bank said in a statement more than 100 Palestinians were injured during clashes with the Israeli soldiers and settlers.

In a joint communique from the Aqaba summit, the Israeli and Palestinian sides affirmed their commitment to "all previous agreements" and the necessity of committing to de-escalation on the ground to prevent further violence.

The five parties also recognized the importance of upholding the historic status quo at the holy sites in Jerusalem, including al-Aqsa Mosque, "in word and practice", emphasizing Jordan's special role as custodian.

The summit saw Israel committing to cease discussion of any new settlements for four months and to stop authorization of any outposts for six months, which was soon denied by Israeli cabinet officials.

Belal Alakhras, a political analyst and Palestinian researcher at the University of Malaya in Malaysia, said the Aqaba summit, held under the auspices of the United States, provides "no effective solution to the situation in Palestine" and can "divert attention from the real issues currently facing the Palestinians".

"Ending the violence in Palestine can only be realized with one solution: giving the Palestinian people their right to independence," said Dina Yulianti Sulaeman, director of the Indonesia Center for Middle East Studies and lecturer in international relations at Padjadjaran University in Indonesia.

"I believe Israel's promise to delay the construction of new settlement units for six months is only an attempt to buy time, considering the escalation in the West Bank is troublesome for Israel," Sulaeman said.

The day after the signing of the Aqaba summit, Israeli Minister of Finance Bezalel Smotrich openly said he refused to stop building settlements, "not even for one day", Sulaeman noted.

She said the construction of settlements by expelling Palestinians from their land and homes shows what Israel is doing is "colonization" and that "without stopping colonization, violence will continue".

Hours after the summit, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu tweeted the approval and construction of new housing units in the Israeli settlements in the occupied West Bank "will continue according to the original planning and construction schedule, without any changes."

Alakhras said the summit focused "primarily on the consequences of the Israeli occupation" and "was driven by the concern of the Israeli government and Washington" regarding increased examples of Palestinian resistance, particularly in the West Bank.

"The root causes of the Palestinian issue, such as the military occupation and the denial of basic rights to Palestinians, were not addressed. The Israeli government benefits from these measures as they shift the focus to security concerns and do not bring about any substantial changes on the ground."

The Israeli Defense Forces and security forces said they were in pursuit of the drive-by shooters, with Netanyahu calling on the public "not to take the law into one's own hands" in a video posted online.

"The Aqaba summit has further weakened Palestinian national unity, as most Palestinian factions rejected it. To address the fundamental issue of occupation, positive involvement from relevant regional and international powers is needed without relying on the biased role of the United States," Alakhras said.

"Persistence in repeating the same thing without taking any further action is unlikely to produce a result," he added.

US State Department Spokesperson Ned Price condemned "the violence in the West Bank, including the terrorist attack that killed two Israelis and settler violence, which resulted in the killing of one Palestinian, injuries to over 100 others, and the destruction of extensive property" in a tweet on Feb 27.

Summit participants will meet again in March in Sharm el-Sheikh, Egypt.

Xinhua contributed to the report.