Poll: Israelis, Palestinians skeptical about talks

updated 3:37 p.m. ET Nov. 23, 2007

RAMALLAH, West Bank - Mohammed Naji’s son was killed by Israeli soldiers. Ron Kehrmann’s daughter died at the hands of a Palestinian suicide bomber.

Beyond their grief, the two fathers share something else — both are skeptical next week’s Middle East summit called by President Bush in Annapolis, Md., will do anything to end decades of conflict between their two peoples.

“I think it’s all a big waste of time,” Kehrmann said, saying the leaders on both sides are weak.

“This is not the first conference to be held,” Naji said. “None of these conferences produced peace.”

The Israeli newspaper Haaretz said Thursday a Nov. 17-dated draft of a joint document being worked on by Israeli and Palestinians negotiators showed wide gaps on issues that have derailed peace talks in the past — final borders, the status of Jerusalem and Palestinian refugees.

Palestinian envoy Saeb Erekat, identified by Haaretz as one of the draft’s authors, denied its authenticity, but he acknowledged “serious difficulties” in the negotiations. Israel wouldn’t comment on the report, though officials did not dispute its authenticity.

Little hope
Polls indicate most Israelis and Palestinians have little hope ahead of the Annapolis gathering, which is the first formal attempt to launch peace talks in seven years. More than 4,400 Palestinians and 1,100 Israelis have died in fighting since the last breakdown of talks.

Moti Milrod / AP Ron Kehrmann holds a picture of his daughter Tal, who was killed by a Palestinian suicide bomber in 2003.

Naji and Kehrmann lost their children in vastly different circumstances — and the deaths cannot be equated.

Naji’s son, Abdel Moneim, was a militant who was targeted by an Israeli undercover unit in 2004. Kehrmann’s daughter Tal was a 17-year-old girl killed four years ago while riding a bus on her way to shop for her high school graduation.

Naji has seven other sons in Israeli prisons, one of whom is expected to be among the roughly 450 Palestinian prisoners to be released in the coming days as a confidence-building measure ahead of the conference. Some 9,000 Palestinians are serving time in Israeli jails.

“I am happy he will be released, but I am sad that others are not,” Naji said.

For Kehrmann, the prisoner release touches the rawest nerve of all. Although the decision is in keeping with long-standing Israeli policy of not freeing those convicted in deadly attacks, he sees the militants set for release as “potential killers.”

Muhammed Muheisen / AP Backdropped by portraits of their seven sons jailed in Israel, Palestinian Mohammed Naji and wife Latifah hold a photo of their son, Abdel Moneim, who died after being targeted by an Israeli undercover unit in 2004.

Kehrmann said he doesn’t trust the Palestinians’ intentions and thinks it is a mistake to talk peace before the Palestinian leadership reins in militants and changes its mentality.

“We’ve been killing each other here for 60 years. Let’s give it a year or two of not killing and not talking and then we’ll see,” he said. “I don’t see any positive result that could come out” of the Annapolis meeting.

Poll: Few believe talks will lead to progress
In a poll released this week, 57 percent of Palestinians said they don’t believe the conference will lead to progress in peacemaking.

The poll, conducted by the independent Near East Consulting firm, surveyed 1,200 people and had a margin of error of three percentage points.

An Israeli poll, conducted in recent days by the Dahaf polling institute, said almost 70 percent of Israelis support holding the conference, but roughly the same percentage believe it won’t help move along the peace process. The institute said the survey of 500 people had a 4.5-point margin of error.

“I am full of hope that something will come out of it, but I don’t believe it. Experience has taught us that nothing comes from these gatherings,” said Yehuda Cohen, a 52-year-old Israeli green grocer.

MORE FROM MIDEAST & N. AFRICA

Mideast & N. Africa Section Front

Iran report: 3 Americans accused of spying Obama to meet Netanyahu at White House Vanished Persian army said found in desert Iran lawmakers stand firm against U.N. plan Saudis bombing us, Yemen rebels say Mideast & N. Africa Section Front   Add Mideast & N. Africa headlines to your news reader: