Middle East: Obama wants Palestinian state

Al Jazeera

Obama seeks Palestine state on 1967 borders
US president says borders of Israel and Palestine should be based on 1967 lines with mutually agreed land swaps.

Barack Obama, the US president, has laid out his vision for the Middle East and North Africa during a key speech in Washington.

On the issue of Palestine, Obama said: "The borders of Israel and Palestine should be based on the 1967 lines with mutually agreed swaps, so that secure and recognised borders are established for both states.

"The Palestinian people must have the right to govern themselves, and reach their potential, in a sovereign and contiguous state.

"As for security, every state has the right to self-defence, and Israel must be able to defend itself – by itself – against any threat."

His comments come a day ahead of a visit to Washington by Binyamin Netanyahu, the Israeli prime minister.

'Get out of the way'

During his address to the US state department on Thursday, Obama said Bashar al-Assad, the Syrian president, must either lead his country through a democratic transition or "get out of the way".

Obama said Syria's brutal crackdown on pro-reform activists was unacceptable.

He said Assad could no longer rule through repression and must change course if he wants international acceptance.

More than 850 people are believed to have been killed in two months of unrest in Syria.

Obama's speech came a day after he imposed sanctions on Assad and six other officials for human rights abuses during the crackdown.

The president said two leaders in the region had stepped down and that more may follow. The president also said the future of the US was bound to the region.

Addressing the death of Osama bin Laden, the president said the al-Qaeda leader was a mass murderer, not a martyr, whose ideas were being rejected even before he was killed.

Turning to Libya, he said: "In Libya, we saw the prospect of imminent massacre, had a mandate for action, and heard the Libyan people’s call for help.

"Had we not acted along with our NATO allies and regional coalition partners, thousands would have been killed."

Obama also laid out a major economic initiative in the Middle East to encourage democratic change in the region, beginning with Tunisia and Libya.

Source:
Agencies

http://english.aljazeera.net/news/americas/2011/05/2011519145837856559.html