By Nida Ramahi
Amman
British Foreign minister Robin cook described Thursday’s bombing of Ramallah and Gaza by Israeli military forces, as “a tragedy.”
At a press conference in Amman during a brief stopover Thursday, Cook said that he had been following the events with “mounting concern,” describing the developments as “a tragedy for the region.”
Cook stressed that “there must be an end to the violence and that both parties need to get back to the negotiating table.”
The Minister, who is on a fact-finding mission in the region, had initially planned to make brief stops but said that he will prolong his stay in the region “to remain in close contact with the parties involved.”
Cook is scheduled to meet in Tel Aviv late Thursday UN Secretary General Kofi Annan to “compare notes with him on how to find a way forward and to end the violence and bloodshed.”
He told reporters that he had spoken to US Secretary of State Madeleine Albright and that they were both “shocked” at what had happened and the “fresh deaths in the Palestinian territory," stressing both parties' "determination to see an end to the violence.”
In response to a question by Albawaba.com as to whether the Palestinian request to set up an international investigation committee will be followed through, Cook said he hoped that it would happen saying that “there was a lot of common ground on both sides on the commission of investigation.”
He added that both parties believe “there should be an international element and that it should report to the UN Secretary General,” but he stressed that although an international commission would give insight to what has happened over the past few weeks, it wouldn’t help end the violence.
The British FM, who met with Jordan’s King Abdullah during his stopover in Amman, said that he discussed with the king Thursday’s developments, and that they had also spoken to Egyptian President Hosni Mubarak about the “severity of the situation” and their need to work together to try to help end the violence and bring the parties back to the negotiating table.
© 2000 Al Bawaba (www.albawaba.com)
