Sunday’s visit by Sameh Shoukry is the first by an Egyptian foreign minister since 2007, according to Netanyahu.
Advertisement
Shoukry’s visit is considered the first active move after Egyptian President Abdel Fattah al-Sisi had offered two months ago to start a “warm peace” between Israel and its Arab neighbors.
Egypt’s foreign ministry said in a statement that Shoukry’s visit was part of a push by Cairo to build confidence between Israel and the Palestinians with the ultimate aim of resuming direct talks to reach a comprehensive settlement that would give the Palestinians a state and Israel security.
“Today I call again on the Palestinians to follow the greatest example of Egypt and Jordan and join us for direct negotiations”, he said.
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu will follow up on his tour of east Africa with financing and regulatory help for business deals his team discussed while on the continent.
Last week Netanyahu authorized hundreds of new homes for Israelis in the West Bank and east Jerusalem as a response to Palestinian violence. The French initiative hopes to bring both sides back to the table at the end of the year and was received well by the Palestinians.
Shoukry, who arrived here to discuss an Egyptian initiative to break the deadlock, said his trip was a “continuation of Egypt’s longstanding sense of responsibility” towards peace for itself and all the people of the region. As a peace broker, Egypt would have an advantage in that it is able to speak for a majority of Arab states.
However, relations of the two countries soured in 2012, when Israel embarked on a military operation in the Gaza Strip enclave, ruled by the Hamas Islamist Group.
In May, al-Sisi declared that Egypt was willing to host bilateral Palestine-Israel talks based on the so-called Arab Peace Initiative.
Egypt, by contrast, is a unique friend, particularly of Israel.
After years of domestic upheaval in Egypt following the 2011 “Arab Spring”, Sisi is trying to reestablish the mediating role that former President Hosni Mubarak once played before he was forced to resign, analysts said. The statement did not mention the return of Palestinian refugees in exile.
The Israeli government has approved almost $13 million in financing for the occupied West Bank settlements of Kiryat Arba and Hebron, according to officials.
The establishment of such a Palestinian state conflicts with Israeli actions in the West Bank and East Jerusalem.
Speaking of his four-country African tour last week, Netanyahu said it advanced Israel’s bid to secure more support at the United Nations. He said he would hold two meetings during the day with Shoukry.
Advertisement
Mandelblit issued a statement saying that “Following information relating, among others, to the prime minister, that was submitted to the attorney general by the Israel Police Investigation and Intelligence Department, the attorney general conducted several discussions with representtives of the State Attorney’s Office, top officials in the Justice Ministry and officials in the Police Investigation and Intelligence Department”.
