BICOM

The President of the Palestinian Authority (PA), Jordan’s Prime Minister and Egypt’s Foreign Minister are this morning attending the funeral of Israel’s former-President Shimon Peres, who passed away earlier this week.

PA President Mahmoud Abbas sent a request yesterday to coordinate his attendance to Maj. Gen. Yoav Mordechai, the coordinator of Israel’s government activities in the territories. The request was approved by Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s office.

An unnamed Palestinian official was quoted saying that Abbas wanted to “send a strong message to Israeli society that the Palestinians are for peace, and appreciate the efforts of peaceful men like Shimon Peres”.

Earlier this week, Abbas sent a letter of condolence to Peres’s family. Both Peres and Abbas were signatories to the Oslo Accords during the 1990s. In 2014, they both travelled to Rome to participate in a prayer session for peace alongside Pope Francis.

Abbas, as expected, is accompanied at the funeral by other senior Palestinian officials. He was seated prominently at the funeral on the front row, alongside President of the European Council Donald Tusk.

Egypt’s Foreign Minister Sameh Shoukry will also attend the funeral. Earlier this week, Egypt’s President Abdel Fattah al-Sisi expressed “deep sorrow and grief” over Peres’ death, calling him “a dove of peace in the region”.

Jordan’s King Abdullah yesterday sent a letter of condolence to Israel’s President Reuven Rivlin. Abdullah said that Peres’s “contributions towards achieving peace and security in the region are more relevant than ever before”. He urged that Peres’s “efforts in the Israeli-Palestinian peace process and his support for the two-state solution must be upheld and built upon”. Jordan’s Prime Minister Jawad Anani is attending today’s funeral.