(Politico).U.S. Middle East peace envoy George Mitchell is due to meet with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu Friday morning, but the agenda is not one would think.
According to an Israeli official, Mitchell is supposed to convey to Netanyahu the language that the U.S. government will use to express apparent disagreement or objection to the Goldstone fact finding commission report on the Gaza campaign last January. The decision on possible critical language on the report, the Israelis hear from the Hill, is going up to Secretary of State Hillary Clinton.
The State Department declined to comment. An official said they are working on a reaction to the Gaza report.
The Israeli official did not acknowledge any linkage between the decision Netanyahu gives Mitchell re: possible Middle East peace talks, and what Mitchell delivers to Netanyahu by way of some degree of critique of Goldstone's Gaza commission report. "No linkage we are aware of."
Separately, another American source said Thursday that should a meeting of Obama, Netanyahu and Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas not transpire on the sidelines of the UN General Assembly next week in New York, Netanyahu did not want to be blamed.
According to an Israeli official, Mitchell is supposed to convey to Netanyahu the language that the U.S. government will use to express apparent disagreement or objection to the Goldstone fact finding commission report on the Gaza campaign last January. The decision on possible critical language on the report, the Israelis hear from the Hill, is going up to Secretary of State Hillary Clinton.
The State Department declined to comment. An official said they are working on a reaction to the Gaza report.
The Israeli official did not acknowledge any linkage between the decision Netanyahu gives Mitchell re: possible Middle East peace talks, and what Mitchell delivers to Netanyahu by way of some degree of critique of Goldstone's Gaza commission report. "No linkage we are aware of."
Separately, another American source said Thursday that should a meeting of Obama, Netanyahu and Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas not transpire on the sidelines of the UN General Assembly next week in New York, Netanyahu did not want to be blamed.