Abraham Rabinovich, Jerusalem
June 04
US President Barack Obama last night began a landmark Middle East mission to reach out to the world's Muslims, but earned a swift rebuke from Osama bin Laden in a new audiotape.
Mr Obama arrived in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia, to a red-carpet welcome and a kiss on both cheeks from Saudi King Abdullah, a key regional powerbroker who serves as protector of the two holiest shrines in Islam.
But minutes after Air Force One touched down, Al-Jazeera television aired a new tape from the al-Qa'ida chief, hot on the heels of a statement from his right-hand man, Ayman al-Zawahiri, who lashed out at Mr Obama's "bloody messages".
Joining a battle for the hearts and minds of the Arab world, bin Laden accused Mr Obama of perpetuating former president George W. Bush's policies of "antagonising Muslims".
"He has followed the steps of his predecessor in antagonising Muslims ... and laying the foundation for long wars," bin Laden said, referring to clashes between the US-backed Pakistan Government and Islamist militants.
"Obama and his administration have sowed new seeds of hatred against America. Let the American people prepare to harvest the crops of what the leaders of the White House plant in the next years and decades."
Mr Obama and King Abdullah held talks at the monarch's sprawling farm outside Riyadh, with Mr Obama making his first foray into tricky personal diplomacy in the region, after a flurry of talks with Middle East leaders in Washington.
Mr Obama will tonight travel to Egypt, another pillar of the Arab world, to deliver a personal appeal for reconciliation to the world's 1.5 billion Muslims, and hold his first talks with Egyptian President Hosni Mubarak.
King Abdullah has been seeking to relaunch a 2002 Arab-backed Middle East peace initiative, which has been praised by the Obama administration.
The Saudi initiative calls for normalisation of relations between the Arab states and Israel, a full withdrawal by Israel from Palestinian land, the creation of a Palestinian state and an "equitable" solution for the Palestinian refugees.
But it was unclear whether Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu's tough stand on Jewish settlements in Palestian areas would scupper US hopes of convincing the Arab world to make concessions to Israel to put momentum into the peace process.
The US President's trip comes amid a confrontation between his administration and the Israeli Government over Israeli settlements in the West Bank and Mr Netanyahu's refusal to publicly endorse a two-state solution.
Speaking in Washington yesterday before his departure, Mr Obama gave Mr Netanyahu an ultimatum to change his stance on the West Bank settlements and a two-state solution with the Palestinians within four to six weeks. Mr Obama issued the declaration to the Israeli leader via Mr Netanyahu's Defence Minister, Ehud Barak.
Mr Obama made a surprise appearance at a meeting Mr Barak was holding in Washington with US National Security Adviser General Jim Jones.
Mr Obama was not scheduled to meet Mr Barak but spoke with the former Israeli leader for about 15 minutes. Reports said he told Mr Barak he was giving Mr Netanyahu four to six weeks to provide an "updated position" regarding construction in West Bank settlements and the two-state principle.
Mr Netanyahu is concerned Mr Obama's bridge-building with the Muslim world will necessarily come at Israel's expense. The differences between the new US administration and Mr Netanyahu's Government have thus far been largely confined to one issue - settlement expansion. But there is fear in Jerusalem that the differences in mindset will eventually extend to more critical issues such as Jerusalem and final borders.
Israel has long since stopped building new settlements, but under an agreement with the previous Bush administration it continued to build within existing settlements to accommodate "natural growth".
However, the Obama administration has made it clear that it wants a halt to all construction. For Washington, the issue is whether it can persuade the Arab world it is serious about creating a new dialogue with it. Moderate Arab leaders with whom Mr Obama has met since taking office have emphasised that the growth of Israeli settlements on Palestinian land makes a moderate position untenable for them.
In preparing his pitch to the Muslim world, Mr Obama has said he is not abandoning the Jewish state as an ally. But he has made it clear he is reordering his priorities to be an honest broker between Israel and the Arabs.
Source: The Australian
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