B’Tselem ended its cooperation agreements with the Israeli military in 2014, following the last military offensive against Gaza, which lasted 50 days and left 2,140 Palestinians dead and wreaked huge destruction on the enclave.
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After the talks were postponed, Egyptian President Abdel Fattah al-Sisi invited Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas to Cairo for bilateral discussions, with a view to facilitating the French initiative.
Palestinian Authority President Mahmoud Abbas told a gathering of the Arab League Saturday that the body he represents is ready to accept a “fair and just peace” based on internationally recognized United Nations resolutions in accordance with the 2003 Arab peace initiative.
In Cairo, Abbas reiterated Palestinian demands that a future Palestinian state have east Jerusalem as its capital and that it be established within the borders that had existed on the eve of the 1967 Middle East when Israel captured the then Jordanian-administered West Bank and east Jerusalem. To solidify their claims, in addition to military presence, Israel has been building settlements in the West Bank and East Jerusalem, and on a number of occasions refusing to negotiate the status of Jerusalem.
The body of al-Sharif, which was returned to the family on Friday after being held by Israeli authorities for over two months, was carried by Palestinian security officers from the al-Ahli hospital in the city of Hebron to an ambulance that took his body to mourners and family members in order for them to say their final goodbyes before the burial.
Palestinian Authority President Mahmoud Abbas also denounced Israel for stonewalling the so-called peace negotiations. The Palestinians recognized Israel in 1993, he recounted, and is sufficient.
“We will be prepared to accept a slight exchange of territory”, he said.
Last month the Palestinians welcomed France’s initiative to hold an global conference aimed at kick-starting a new round of peace talks after the two sides failed to reach an agreement in April 2014. But Prime Minister Netanyahu rejected the French initiative, saying the “best way to resolve the conflict between Israel and Palestinians is through direct, bilateral negotiations”.
“We refused Israeli instructions to hold the funeral at night with only a few people in attendance”.
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Israel’s internal security minister on Tuesday ordered police to stop handing over for burial the bodies of Palestinians killed while carrying out attacks, defying a supreme court recommendation.
