Livni to Abbas: Don’t Get Swept Away by Hamas

The Palestinian Authority must return to Mideast peace talks with Israel, Opposition Leader Tzipi Livni told Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas on Wednesday, adding that Palestinians should not allow themselves to be swept up by extreme Islamic forces.

Livni’s comments were made during a meeting with Abbas in the Jordanian capital of Amman, which was also attended by former Kadima MKs Haim Ramon and Tzachi Hanegbi as well as current Kadima MK Roni Bar-On.

“Don’t let the extreme Islamic forces sweep over you as well,” Livni told Abbas, adding that the “Middle East is changing and the [peace talks] stalemate is serving the extremists who are taking advantage of the [Israeli-Palestinian] conflict across the Arab world.”

The Kadima chairperson urged Abbas to work in cooperation with Israel to fend off extremist elements, warning the PA president against letting “Hamas solidify its agenda through forming a joint government with you.”

“There’s no change for peace with [Hamas]. Now, before a unity cabinet is formed, faced with regional changes, and instead of unilateral steps at the UN, negotiations must be started before it’s too late, and I urge you to do so before it’s too late,” Livni added.

Abbas, in turn, told Livni that he considered peace and negotiation to be the only ways to reach a two-state solution, based on the 1967 borders, and to resolve the Israeli-Palestinian conflict.

For more, go to Haaretz.com