Former United Stated President Jimmy Carter visited the Gaza strip Tuesday as part of his trip to Israel and the West Bank. Carter said peace in the Middle East is not be possible without full reconciliation and cooperation from Hamas and Fatah. Only then, he said, would it be possible to begin peace negotiations with Israel.
Carter met with Hamas leaders on Tuesday in Gaza City. As he walked through the Gaza Strip surveying the damage from the recent Operation Cast Lead the former president said he was holding back tears. “Tragically, the international community too often ignores the cries for help and the citizens of Palestine are treated more like animals than like human beings,” he said while walking through the blockaded Gaza Strip.
Carter wanted to meet with Hamas leaders to encourage them to accept the international community’s conditions for ending its boycott of the Islamic militant party. He plans to meet with the Obama administration upon his return to the United States.
Last week Carter criticized the speech given by Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, saying it created more obstacles to peace.
