Palestinian Prime Minister Ahmed Qurei, also known as Abu Ala, warned Israel against taking unilateral steps, such as seizing parts of the West Bank and Gaza Strip, claiming in such cases "the fire will burn, the terror will grow."
His comments were published on Thursday, a day after Palestinian leader Yasser Arafat dismissed as meaningless Israeli Prime Minister Ariel Sharon's hints of evacuating some settlements.
Qurei, in an interview with Ma'ariv daily, also slammed the current route of a "security fence" that Israel is building in parts of the West Bank, saying it will only cause further resentment.
"This will not help, this will not succeed, this will cause a disaster. You cannot build a fence on our land, to cage us like chickens and hope all will be well," he said.
The Palestinian Prime Minister said dismantling settlements is a positive step. "But if he (PM Sharon) wants to build a fence and use it to annex Palestinian land, this is unacceptable. The conflict will continue, the fire will burn, the terror will grow, no one will benefit from this," he said.
"We will not accept this, the world will not accept this," he added. In addition, Qurei called for an immediate resumption of peace talks. (Albawaba.com)
© 2003 Al Bawaba (www.albawaba.com)
