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Israel: Arab Peace Initiative Is Unacceptable


(Times of Israel) Raphael Ahren - Vice Prime Minister Silvan Shalom, who is responsible for peace negotiations with the Palestinians, on Thursday rejected the peace initiative drafted by Saudi Arabia and backed by the Arab League as a blueprint for a possible agreement. "It's very nice to talk about the Saudi initiative, but it underwent three major changes at the hand of the Arab League in Beirut" since it was first tabled in 2002 that would make it impossible for any Israeli government to take it seriously. First, the initiative now calls for any agreement to be based on the 1967 lines. "That wasn't in the (original) Saudi initiative," Shalom said. The updated scheme also calls for Israel to return the Golan Heights to Syria, he said. Lastly, it requires the full implementation of the Palestinians' right of return. Even former prime minister Ehud Olmert, who negotiated extensively with PA President Mahmoud Abbas, did not adopt the Arab League initiative, Shalom noted.
2015-07-10 00:00:00
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