Olmert Hopes To Restart Peace Talks With Abbas In Coming Days
Ryan R. Jones - All Headline News Middle East Correspondent Jerusalem, Israel (AHN) - Israeli Prime Minister Ehud Olmert said Thursday morning that he hopes to meet with Palestinian Authority Chairman Mahmoud Abbas in the coming days in an effort to jumpstart the stalled Middle East peace process. Olmert said in an interview with Israel Radio, "I am making a very great effort to have a dialogue ... I want to meet with him, we should start a process." Olmert said he had already messaged Abbas about his desire for a summit. "I told him that I would be happy to meet with him." However, the prime minister cautioned not to expect too much from an initial meeting, especially when the Palestinian Authority government is still controlled by a terrorist organization - Hamas. Olmert also insisted that Israel will make no concessions to Abbas until an abducted Israeli soldier being held in the Gaza Strip is freed. Speaking at a gathering in London the night before, Vice Premier Shimon Peres said the Palestinians must present a unified front for peace if any progress is to be made, reported Reuters. "We are ready to give back land. We are for a Palestinian state beside an Israeli state," Peres said in an address to London's Royal Institute of International Affairs. But the Palestinians "must show a talent to come together. They must have one government. They must have one army. You cannot have a state if you don't hav |
