Benjamin Netanyahu Nixes Paris Meeting With Mahmoud Abbas — Despite ‘Anytime Anywhere’ Vow
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said on Wednesday that he had told French President Francois Hollande that he would not meet Palestinian leader Mahmoud Abbas if France pushed ahead with an international peace conference in Paris later this month.
France has been trying to convince Netanyahu to meet with Abbas in Paris, in an effort to revive moribund peace talks between the two sides, Foreign Minister Jean-Marc Ayrault said on Wednesday. Netanyahu has said he would only participate in direct talks.
“Netanyahu told Hollande that if there will not be an international conference in Paris, he will come to meet Abu Mazen (Abbas) for direct talks without preconditions. Israel will not participate in an international conference that will not contribute to achieving peace,” a statement from Netanyahu’s office said.
I hope you appreciated this article. Before you go, I’d like to ask you to please support the Forward’s award-winning journalism this Passover.
In this age of misinformation, our work is needed like never before. We report on the news that matters most to American Jews, driven by truth, not ideology.
At a time when newsrooms are closing or cutting back, the Forward has removed its paywall. That means for the first time in our 126-year history, Forward journalism is free to everyone, everywhere. With an ongoing war, rising antisemitism, and a flood of disinformation that may affect the upcoming election, we believe that free and open access to Jewish journalism is imperative.
Readers like you make it all possible. Right now, we’re in the middle of our Passover Pledge Drive and we still need 300 people to step up and make a gift to sustain our trustworthy, independent journalism.
Make a gift of any size and become a Forward member today. You’ll support our mission to tell the American Jewish story fully and fairly.
— Rachel Fishman Feddersen, Publisher and CEO
Join our mission to tell the Jewish story fully and fairly.
Only 300 more gifts needed by April 30