Dear Editors,
In "Plan for Mideast talks gets mixed reception" (9/26/11), The Washington Post states that a proposal "to renew peace negotiations has received guarded Israeli approval and a cool reception from the Palestinians." Why mince words? The Israelis agreed and the Palestinians did not. Why not say it?
According to the article, Israeli Prime Minister Netanyahu said: "We will go with it". Israeli Foreign Minister Lieberman said, "we should accept it." This seems pretty clear.
But according to the article, the Palestinians said that preconditions must be met first. "We will not accept [negotiations] until legitimacy is the foundation, and they cease settlement activity". This is not a cool reception, this is rejection.
A more accurate statement would be "The proposal was accepted by Israel but not by the Palestinians." You may think the difference is too subtle to matter, but portraying the conflict in an objective manner is important. World opinion is riding on it, and your news reporting gives much of the world their impression of the issue.
Sincerely,
Michael Berenhaus
