Statement by

Assistant Secretary of State for Near Eastern Affairs

David Welch

Gaza Discord and its Implications

House Foreign Affairs Middle East and South Asia SubCommittee

March 12, 2007

Chairman Ackerman, Representative Pence, Members of this distinguished subcommittee, thank you for the opportunity to speak to you today. I will focus my remarks on the Administration’s efforts to support the Israelis, Egyptians, and Palestinians as they work to address the situation in the Gaza Strip. I will also address how the situation in Gaza affects our overarching objective of realizing peace based upon the establishment of an independent, democratic and viable Palestinian state living alongside a safe and secure Israel. The increased violence emanating from the Gaza Strip over the past several weeks and Israel’s military responses complicate these efforts, but strengthen our resolve to complete the task. Peace between Israel and the Palestinians is one of the Administration’s top foreign policy priorities for 2008, as demonstrated by the Annapolis Conference, by President Bush’s travel to the region in January, and by Secretary Rice’s intensive travel and engagement over the past several years.

Secretary Rice and I returned from the region at the end of last week. The Secretary’s trip was focused on ensuring that the peace negotiations launched in Annapolis stay on track despite considerable challenges. One of the principle challenges facing all parties is the current situation in Gaza, the home to 1.5 million Palestinians and an integral part of a future Palestinian state. The Gaza Strip is currently dominated by HAMAS, a terrorist organization that rejects Israel, rejects the legitimate leadership of the Palestinian Authority, and rejects the non-violent efforts of those parties to create a lasting peace.

The situation in the Gaza Strip is volatile and the trend since Israel’s withdrawal has been downward. Last summer, HAMAS launched a coup against the legitimate Palestinian Authority. In late January, HAMAS orchestrated a breach of the Gaza border with Egypt. At the end of February, HAMAS initiated an uptick in rocket attacks against innocent Israeli civilians, forcing Israel to respond in self-defense.

The latest outbreak of violence highlights just how much work remains and how desperately both Israelis and Palestinians need a sustainable peace. President Abbas initially announced a delay in negotiations, then reaffirmed his commitment to the negotiating process and agreed, as Secretary Rice announced in Jerusalem, to resume permanent status discussions. President Abbas also swiftly denounced terror against Israeli civilians, including in the immediate aftermath of the March 6 Yeshiva shooting in Jerusalem. Prime Minister Olmert stated that the negotiations would continue despite the violence against his citizens.

During the nine months since its mid-June 2007 violent takeover of the Gaza Strip, HAMAS has attempted to hold the population of southern Israel hostage. Sderot has been barraged almost daily with rocket attacks resulting in one death, dozens of injuries, damage to property, and a constant sense of fear and insecurity. In defense of its citizens and in the wake of civilian fatalities, Israel took action in late February, with military operations in the Gaza Strip. Far too many innocent Israeli and Palestinian civilians have been killed or wounded as violence has spiraled, but the responsibility rests squarely with HAMAS.

Clearly Israelis have not been the only ones to suffer; the civilians of the Gaza Strip have been held hostage by HAMAS’s extremism. In response to frequent rocket and mortar attacks against its citizens, Israel restricted the flow of goods and services, including electricity and fuel products, from Israel into the Gaza Strip. The closures have contributed to deteriorating living conditions for ordinary civilians. But as supplies of essential goods have dwindled, we have seen an increase in smuggled goods from Egypt to the Gaza Strip which go beyond essential goods and include cash and illicit contraband, all of which profit HAMAS. This increased black market demand and the subsequent increase in smuggling activity has put an additional strain on the Egyptian security services operating on the Gaza-Egypt border. Egypt is working to address the problem, but the situation remains a significant challenge. Meanwhile, according to current reports, 80% of Gazans rely on international assistance for two-thirds of their basic needs. People are without heating, electricity and potable water for extended periods of time. Childhood illnesses related to malnutrition have increased dramatically.

Israel has stated at the highest levels that it will not allow a humanitarian crisis in the Gaza Strip as a result of the prolonged closure. During the last two weeks, even as the Israeli military was conducting operations in Gaza and Israeli cities were hit by rockets, Israel continued to approve the transfer of basic humanitarian goods into the Gaza Strip, and the transfer of wounded Gazans into Israel and Egypt for treatment.

As Secretary Rice vowed on June 18, 2007, the United States has not abandoned the innocent residents of the Gaza Strip. The United States is supporting the people of Gaza through ongoing humanitarian projects to improve water and sanitation networks, health programs, and other relief efforts, and through our annual contributions to the United Nations Relief and Works Agency for Palestinians in the Near East (UNRWA) and the World Food Program (WFP). In 2007, we contributed $154.15 million to UNRWA. A significant portion of our UNRWA contribution helps to support basic services and humanitarian assistance for over one million Gazan refugees. Beyond our assistance to UNRWA, the United States (through USAID) provided approximately $17 million in humanitarian assistance to Gazans in 2007, including $7.4 million for WFP activities in the Gaza Strip in 2007. We intend to provide a similar level of support in 2008 and on March 4 Secretary Rice announced an FY 2008 contribution to UNWRA for $148 million. All U.S. assistance to the Palestinian territories has been, and will continue to be, governed by strict accountability and oversight mechanisms to ensure that taxpayer funds do not fall into the wrong hands.

We are persevering in our efforts to realize the President’s vision of peace. Prime Minister Olmert and President Abbas have held regular meetings since Annapolis, and their negotiators are also meeting regularly. The United States will continue to encourage progress. At the request of the President and Secretary of State, Lieutenant General William Fraser has begun his work with the parties to promote their implementation of their obligations under the Roadmap. The Secretary’s Special Envoy for Middle East Security, retired General Jim Jones, has visited the region twice and is engaged in discussions about long-term security with both sides.

On the ground, the U.S. Security Coordinator, Lieutenant General Keith Dayton, has made substantial progress in his mission to bolster the capabilities of the Palestinian Authority’s security services. As part of that mission, a battalion of over 600 Palestinian National Security Forces officers is currently being trained in Jordan and we plan, pending the appropriation of additional funding from Congress, to train additional battalions this year and next. A 460-man contingent of Presidential Guard members is also currently being trained in Jordan to improve their law and order abilities, and the State Department’s Bureau of Diplomatic Security is conducting specialized VIP and vital installation training for Presidential Guard officers.

In mid-February and again last week, I conducted intensive consultations with our partners in Israel, Egypt and the Palestinian Authority. We discussed ways to work together to protect the security of Israel, Egypt, and the Palestinians, to address the humanitarian needs of Gazans to allow a return of economic activity, and to support the return of the Gaza Strip to the control of the Palestinian Authority. I urged the three parties to find ways to open and regulate border crossings to ensure uninterrupted flows of necessary goods and services to Gaza. We intend to maintain our engagement with the parties to achieve these outcomes. Support from the United States, the European Union, and the rest of the international community is essential, and active coordination among Quartet members will be required.

Mr. Chairman, the situation in the Gaza Strip has commanded much attention in recent weeks, but progress toward a lasting Palestinian-Israeli peace must remain our focused objective. We cannot afford to allow HAMAS or any terrorist group to succeed in undermining the legitimate leadership of the Palestinian Authority, which has continued to denounce terror and reaffirm its commitment to a Palestinian state living side by side with Israel in peace and security. Secretary Rice said on March 5, “There are enemies of peace that will always try to hold hostage the…Palestinian people…We cannot permit that to happen.” We mourn the innocents that have needlessly lost their lives as a result of this conflict, and we are committed to ensuring that the negotiations between Israel and the Palestinian Authority continue despite the violence so that future generations may be spared a repeat of these events.

At the end of the day, success in the peace negotiations between Israel and the Palestinian Authority is the best way to ensure greater security for Israelis and Palestinians, including those in the Gaza Strip. When presented with a peace agreement that gives the Palestinian people the opportunity to have a viable, independent state, we believe the majority of Palestinians in both the West Bank and the Gaza Strip would support such an agreement. Providing the Palestinians with this choice would demonstrate that the responsible leadership of President Abbas can deliver results and address Palestinian national aspirations, and make clear to the Palestinian people the fundamental failure of violence.

Thank you, Mr. Chairman. I would be pleased to take your questions.