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Netanyahu heading to UK, France

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Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu is expected to depart tonight for meetings with counterparts in London and Paris. He will hold meetings in London on Wednesday, and is expected to have his first official meeting with David Cameron since the British Prime Minister took office last May. In France, Netanyahu will meet with President Nicholas Sarkozy. The meetings are expected to focus on the Israeli-Palestinian diplomatic process. Originally, the Palestinian push for UN recognition of its statehood at the General Assembly in September was expected to form the main focus. Israel is pressing European states not to back Palestinian moves to seek recognition at the UN, arguing that this will undermine a future negotiated solution to the conflict. However, the expected signing this week of a reconciliation agreement between Fatah and Hamas is now also likely to be high on the agenda.

Hamas continues to refuse to adhere to the conditions set by the Quartet for international engagement, which are renunciation of violence, acceptance of Israel’s right to exist and commitment to existing agreements between Israelis and Palestinians. This calls into question the extensive financial and political support the Palestinian Authority receives from the EU and the US, where Hamas is proscribed as a terrorist organization. When Hamas participated in the Palestinian Authority government in 2006-7, international donors had to create special mechanisms to fund the Palestinians whilst bypassing Hamas controlled institutions. Israel has already delayed the transfer of tax revenues to the Palestinian Authority which it collects on their behalf. The Palestinian unity agreement is scheduled to be signed in Cairo on Wednesday, though the full extent of the agreement remains unclear.

BICOM Briefing: The implications of the Palestinian unity agreement