Lapid: Palestinians want justice; Israelis want security, so talks have failed

Israel’s Finance Minister Yair Lapid said on Tuesday that the Israel-Palestine peace talks have “failed” because Israelis and the Palestinians want two different things. “The Palestinians want peace and justice; Israelis want peace and security,” he told Bloomberg TV.

Contradicting Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, Lapid added that there is no need for the Palestinians to recognise Israel as a Jewish state.

“My father did not come to Haifa from a Budapest Jewish ghetto in order to get recognition from Abu Mazen [Mahmoud Abbas],” he said. “The State of Israel is a place where Jews are able to define themselves, after 2,000 years in exile. We are now independent and make our own rules.” Lapid noted that Netanyahu is familiar with his position on the matter.