Kerry: Saudi king backs Israeli-Palestinian peace push

U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry returned to Israel on Sunday night after spending the day in Jordan and Saudi Arabia, where he briefed leaders on the ongoing Israeli-Palestinian peace negotiations. Kerry was expected to depart Israel for the U.S. on Monday.

Kerry said on Sunday that both Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and Palestinian Authority President Mahmoud Abbas „have made the tough choices to stay at [the negotiating] table.”

„We are now at a point where the choices narrow down and the choices are obviously real and difficult,” Kerry said on Sunday. „And so we — the United States, President [Barack] Obama, myself — will do everything in our power to help the parties be able to see the road ahead in ways that will meet the interests of both of their peoples.”

Kerry noted that „all of the core issues are on the table — the difficult issues of security, of territory, borders, the future of the refugee issue, the status ultimately of the city of Jerusalem, and the end of conflict and of claims.”

At Sunday’s cabinet meeting, Netanyahu again highlighted the issue of Palestinian incitement against Israel.

„To my regret, this incitement is continuing,” Netanyahu said. „We have seen examples in recent days. Opposition to recognizing the Jewish state and our right to be here is continuing. We are not foreigners in Jerusalem, Beit El or Hebron. I reiterate that, in my view, the nonrecognition of this basic fact is the root of both the conflict and the incitement.”

Habayit Haheyudi MK Ayelet Shaked said on Sunday that her party would leave the government and try to topple it if it adopted the 1967 borders as the basis for a peace agreement with the Palestinians.

„A government that accepts the 1967 lines is committing national suicide,” Shaked said.

After a nearly three-hour meeting with Saudi King Abdullah on Sunday, Kerry said that the Saudi monarch had offered „enthusiastic support” for the U.S. peace-seeking effort.

„I want to thank his majesty for not just the length of the meeting, but for the quality of the meeting, for the fullness of the exchange of ideas and particularly for his enthusiastic support for the efforts that are being made with respect to the peace process and the effort to try to end the Palestinian-Israeli conflict,” Kerry said. „Today, his majesty was not just encouraging but supported our efforts in hopes that we can be successful in the days ahead and believes that this is important for the region and that there are great benefits that could come to everybody if we are able to be successful.”

Back in Israel on Monday morning, Kerry met with Opposition Leader Isaac Herzog (Labor) to update him on the progress of the peace negotiations.

„We are at a historic decision-making moment,” Herzog said. „I believe we have no alternative to separating from the Palestinians and establishing two states. Any other path would lead to a binational state.”