Facing Criticism, Obama Modifies Jerusalem Stance

[Purveyor]

Jun 05, 2008 17:42 EST

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - Democratic presidential candidate Barack Obama amended his support for Israel's stance on Jerusalem Thursday, saying Palestinians and Israelis had to negotiate the future of the holy city.

Palestinian leaders reacted with anger and dismay Wednesday to Obama saying Jerusalem should be Israel's undivided capital.

"Well, obviously, it's going to be up to the parties to negotiate a range of these issues. And Jerusalem will be part of those negotiations," Obama told CNN when asked whether Palestinians had no future claim to the city.

Asked if he opposed any division of Jerusalem, Obama said: "As a practical matter, it would be very difficult to execute. And I think that it is smart for us to -- to work through a system in which everybody has access to the extraordinary religious sites in Old Jerusalem but that Israel has a legitimate claim on that city."

In Washington Wednesday, Obama told the American Israel Public Affairs Committee, a pro-Israel lobby group, that if elected president in November, he would work for peace with a Palestinian state alongside Israel.

"Jerusalem will remain the capital of Israel, and it must remain undivided," he told the lobby group.

---EOE---

REUTERS: http://wiredispatch.com/news/?id=200108

[BeatleBoot]

1. I would be interested to hear what Rev Wright has to say about this

And Louis Farrakhan.

[Qutzupalotl]

5. Why? Nobody else is.

[BeatleBoot]

6. Well, no one here anyways.

In the Echo Chamber where everything is safe, clean and pure.

[Qutzupalotl]

8. No one who belongs here anyways.

In case you hadn't noticed, Obama has rejected both those names you mentioned, so they are irrelevant.

[Purveyor]

7. Even more entertaining, imho, would be the Hagee views on Jerusalem. eom

[leftofcool]

2. Well ya can't please both sides

[ananda]

3. Oh pulleezze!

to work through a system in which everybody has access to the extraordinary religious sites in Old Jerusalem but that Israel has a legitimate claim on that city." ????

This doesn't sound coherent nor workable.

Give me a break!

[pegleg]

4. The only time in the last 50 years that all parties have had access

to their holy sites has been under Israeli control. the Jordanians and the Palestinians never allowed jews to worship at the western wall prior to 1967.