Abbas meeting with Israeli lawmakers delayed
Regional unrest blamed for postponement; Livni-Erekat meet as PA’s PM predicts more prisoner releases this month; finance ministers discuss cooperation
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A planned meeting between Israeli lawmakers and the Palestinian president in Ramallah was postponed Sunday, officials on both sides said.
The Israeli lawmakers had planned on traveling to President Mahmoud Abbas’s West Bank headquarters on Tuesday. The lawmakers belong to a new caucus formed to support recently relaunched peace talks.
Officials on both sides said Sunday that the meeting had been delayed. An Israeli spokeswoman cited the crisis in nearby Syria and high-level Palestinian meetings Abbas is holding this week. She said the meeting is expected to take place in the coming weeks.
Palestinian officials said the chief Israeli and Palestinian negotiators held a new round of talks on Saturday and were to meet again on Tuesday. They spoke on condition of anonymity, because the sides are not supposed to discuss the negotiations.
According to Israel Radio, the sides, led by Israel’s Tzipi Livni and the Palestinians’ Saeb Erekat, discussed “all” core issues.
Palestinian Prime Minister Rami Hamdallah said a second phase of Palestinian prisoner releases might take place before the end of the month, the radio report said.
Earlier Sunday, Finance Minister Yair Lapid hosted his Palestinian counterpart Shukri Bishara and discussed various ways to expand the financial cooperation between Israel and the Palestinian Authority.
The meeting was the second of its kind in as many months, as the sides attempt to renew economic cooperation after Israel temporarily froze contacts in 2012 in the wake of Ramallah’s bid for recognition at the United Nations.
The Times of Israel Community.