BICOM

US Special Representative for International Negotiations Jason Greenblatt has returned to Israel to make progress with Israeli-Palestinian talks. Greenblatt visited Cairo last weekend where he met with Egyptian Intelligence chief Khaled Fawzy, who has been leading reconciliation talks between Fatah and Hamas.

Greenblatt is reported to have expressed appreciation to Egypt for its humanitarian aid to Gaza and discussed with Fawzy Israeli-Egyptian security cooperation and attempts to re-start the Israeli-Palestinian peace process

Haaretz reported that a White House source praised the Palestinian unity deal, saying that “Egypt has helped us crack open a door to Gaza that didn’t exist a few weeks ago, and we see it as a possible opportunity”.

In related news, Israel’s Channel Two News reported last night that US officials are ready to present US President Donald Trump’s peace plan. The report suggests that it will be unlike previous proposals and will include a comprehensive regional arrangement that will lead to normalised relations between Israel and the Arab world. The assessment from the US is that they believe Palestinian Authority PA President Mahmoud Abbas is serious about peace, but that they also take Israeli security concerns very seriously. The White House responded to the report by playing down expectations, saying there were no “immediate plans” to reveal the outline of the talks.

Hamas deputy chief Salah al-Arouri led a delegation to Iran last weekend to thank the country for its support. Arouri told his hosts: “We’re not in the stage of recognition; rather we are now in the stage of preparing to eliminate the Zionist entity. Our visit to Tehran is our practical rejection to the Israeli demand to cut ties with it.”

Abbas met King Abdullah of Jordan in Amman yesterday. After the meeting Abbas outlined his vision for a Palestinian unity government, stating that “there will be one authority, one law, one system and one gun and the national consensus government will be enabled to carry out its duties in Gaza as it does in the West Bank”.