Barack Obama and Mahmoud Abbas to Discuss ‘Jewish State’ Recognition
In their upcoming meeting, President Obama and Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas will discuss Palestinian recognition of Israel as a Jewish state, as well as Israel’s planned release of Palestinian prisoners.
Monday’s meeting at the White House will center on the ongoing negotiations between Israel and the Palestinian Authority.
According to Haaretz, Abbas is expected to hold firm in his refusal to recognize Israel as a Jewish state. Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has made recognition of Israel’s Jewish character a key condition of any final peace agreement. Abbas has opposed the condition, saying it would undermine Palestinian refugees’ right to return to Israel. Israeli Opposition Leader Isaac Herzog also says the Palestinians must recognize Israel as a Jewish state, according to the Times of Israel.
Obama and Abbas are also slated to discuss Israel’s planned release of Palestinian prisoners, scheduled for March 28 but opposed by some members of Israel’s governing coalition. The release would implement the fourth and final stage of Israel’s agreement last year to free 104 Palestinian prisoners as a condition for resuming peace negotiations.
On Saturday, Israeli Defense Minister Moshe Ya’alon criticized Abbas for being inflexible in the talks, calling him “not a partner” for an agreement. Ya’alon has criticized the negotiations in the past, saying he doubts their chances for success.
A message from our CEO & publisher Rachel Fishman Feddersen
I hope you appreciated this article. Before you move on, I wanted to ask you to support the Forward’s award-winning journalism during our High Holiday Monthly Donor Drive.
If you’ve turned to the Forward in the past 12 months to better understand the world around you, we hope you will support us with a gift now. Your support has a direct impact, giving us the resources we need to report from Israel and around the U.S., across college campuses, and wherever there is news of importance to American Jews.
Make a monthly or one-time gift and support Jewish journalism throughout 5785. The first six months of your monthly gift will be matched for twice the investment in independent Jewish journalism.
— Rachel Fishman Feddersen, Publisher and CEO