Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas and Israel’s Defence Minister Benny Gantz have met in the occupied West Bank to discuss security co-ordination ahead of US President Joe Biden’s visit to the region.
The peace process between the two states collapsed more than a decade ago and high-level meetings between Israeli and Palestinian leaders are rare.
When they do occur, they tend to focus on day-to-day economic and security co-ordination.
An Israeli statement said the meeting in Ramallah, where the Palestinian Authority is headquartered, was conducted in “positive terms”.
It said the two sides agreed to “continue security co-ordination and to avoid activities that may cause instability”.
Gantz wished Abbas and the Palestinian people a happy Eid al-Adha, a Muslim holiday beginning this weekend, the statement said.
Abbas “stressed the importance of creating a political horizon, respecting the signed agreements and stopping the actions and measures that lead to the deterioration of the situation”, Hussein al-Sheikh, a senior aide to the president, tweeted.
The Palestinian leader also stressed the importance of a “calm atmosphere before President Biden’s visit, which we welcome”, the tweet said.
Gantz met with Abbas a couple of times last year and announced measures to improve economic conditions in the occupied West Bank.
He remains defence minister in a caretaker government ahead of elections planned for November 1.
Read the article in The Canberra Times (AAP).