Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu plans to expedite legislation in the coming days of a public referendum bill, a senior official in Jerusalem said. The move comes in response to pressure from the right over renewed negotiations with the Palestinians. Economy Minister Naftali Bennett conveyed a message Sunday to Netanyahu through coalition chairman MK Yariv Levin,…
When Secretary of State John Kerry announced on Friday that Israel and the Palestinians had tentatively agreed to resume peace talks after three years, he did so standing alone as dusk fell over the Jordanian capital. The image reflects both his achievement and his challenge: few people would have predicted success when he began his…
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s tentative agreement to revive U.S.-sponsored peace talks with the Palestinians met scepticism and scorn on Sunday from some members of his rightist coalition government, including within his own party. With no date yet set for negotiations to begin, let alone a public blueprint for their terms, Netanyahu did not yet…
Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu welcomed on Saturday the resumption of peace talks between Israel and the Palestinians, saying that they are “an essential strategic interest for Israel.” Meanwhile, Israel’s political-security cabinet convened on Saturday evening to hear updates on agreement reached to resume negotiation. “I have in mind a number of objectives,” Netanyahu said, “preventing…
Israel has agreed to release Palestinian prisoners in order to resume peace talks, but will not yield to other demands the Palestinians say must be met before they return to the negotiating table. Strategic Affairs Minister Yuval Steinitz said on Saturday that Israel was prepared to release some “heavyweight” prisoners but could not accept Palestinian…
Secretary of State John Kerry met a Palestinian negotiator in Jordan to discuss resuming peace talks with Israel, officials said, with chances of an immediate breakthrough appearing slim before he leaves later on Friday. The Palestinian leadership on Thursday did not accept Kerry’s latest proposal to restart the talks that have been stalled since 2010,…
As Palestinian leaders gathered to discuss a possible U.S-brokered resumption of peace talks on Thursday, the Israeli government denied a shift in its conditions that might help end a three-year stalemate. President Mahmoud Abbas was due to begin briefing fellow PLO leaders in Ramallah shortly on his meetings this week with U.S. Secretary of State…
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu on Sunday telephoned Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas and said he hoped the two sides could resume peace talks, stalled for three years, Israeli officials said. Netanyahu offered greetings for the Muslim holy month of Ramadan, his office said, adding that he told Abbas: “I hope we will have the opportunity…
