BICOM

What happened: Prime Minister Yair Lapid arrived in New York for the annual United Nations General Assembly (UNGA). Yesterday he held a series of private meetings with other world leaders.

Prime Minister Lapid first met Jordanian King Abdullah II. Their conversation focused on the recent violence in the West Bank. Lapid emphasised the “need for calming the situation on the ground and halting terrorism ahead of the upcoming Jewish holidays.”

The pair also discussed the advancement of bilateral economic and civilian projects.

Before meeting with Lapid, Abdullah addressed the UNGA, noting, “In the Palestinian-Israeli conflict, peace continues to be elusive. Neither war nor diplomacy has held the answer to this historic tragedy.”

Meanwhile back in Israel last night, an 85-year-old woman was brutally murdered in a terror attack in Holon, south of Tel Aviv when she was beaten with a metal beam as she walked down the street.

The attacker, understood to be Palestinian labourer from Kalkilya, entered Israel legally, with a work permit.
The attacker was found hanged this morning close to an abandoned building in central Tel Aviv.

Lapid responded to the attack saying, “Terrorism is the embodiment of pure evil. This is a shocking attack by a despicable and cowardly terrorist who murdered an elderly woman who could not fight back.”

Diplomatic context: The government of change, led first by Naftali Bennett and now Lapid have diplomatically invested heavily in restoring good relations with the Jordanian King. All of Israel’s senior leadership have met Abdullah. This was Lapid’s second meeting since the summer, when they met in Amman.

Relations with Jordan are perceived as key in view of their residual influence in maintaining calm in the West Bank.

Lapid also met with Turkish President Erdogan. This is the first meeting between a Prime Minister of Israel and a President of Turkey since 2008 when Erdogan met with prime minister Ehud Olmert. The meeting follows the recent restoration of full diplomatic ties and the return of Ambassadors.

In the course of their conversation, Lapid thanked Erdogan, “for intelligence cooperation at the time of Iran’s attempts to carry out terrorist attacks on Turkish soil.”

Also in New York, senior Israeli officials met with US Special Envoy and Coordinator for International Energy Affairs Amos Hochstein, who has been facilitating indirect negotiations between Israel and Lebanon over their maritime border.

According to reports this morning in Lebanese media, negotiations have ended. Both sides are now waiting for Hochstein to provide written copies of the final agreement to both sides.

The report suggests the emerging agreement calls for the establishment of a security zone between the competing Israeli and Lebanese lines, with the deployment of a UN international force to patrol the area.

Lapid also met with UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres. According to Lapid’s office, he said, “he expects that the Secretary-General will act to rectify the discriminatory treatment of Israel at the UN, in particular stopping the activity of the Commission of Inquiry.” In addition, he emphasised the common need for western countries to fight terrorism.

Looking ahead: Later today, Lapid is expected to meet other world leaders including Prime Minister Liz Truss and Egyptian President Sisi.

He is also expected to meet Greek Prime Minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis. Greece is now one of Israel’s closest allies. Throughout Israel’s re-engagement with Turkey, Israel has stressed this would not come at the expense of Israel-Greek ties.

Tomorrow Lapid will address the UNGA, he is expected to focus on the dangers of the nuclear agreement with Iran and Israel’s relations with the Palestinians.
Next week is the Jewish New Year with security services on heightened state of alert.