Israeli right welcomes Sisi's offer to a Palestinian State in Sinai

Leaders of the Israeli extremist right have celebrated an offer by the Egyptian President Abdel Fatah Al-Sisi to the President of the Palestinian Authority Mahmoud Abbas to establish a Palestinian state in the Sinai.

Economy Minister Naftali Bennett of the Jewish Home party which represents Jewish settlers in the West Bank said Al-Sisi’s initiative adds credibility to the position of the far-right in Israel and proves that it is possible to resolve the conflict with the Palestinians without compromising the territories occupied 1967.

This morning, Israeli Army Radio reported Bennett as saying that Al-Sisi’s initiative “demonstrates the new reality in the Middle East, where facts collapse and new facts arise that must be exploited effectively”. He called on his colleagues in the right to adopt Al-Sisi’s political initiatives to resolve the conflict which grants Israel the right to keep all the West Bank and Jerusalem.

Minister of Communication Gilad Erdan of the Likud party praised Al-Sisi’s initiative and described it as “innovative” and said it must be pushed forward and build on it.

The Israeli army radio quoted Erdan this morning as saying that Sisi initiative demonstrates the Palestinian extremism and lack of seriousness in achieving a political settlement to the conflict.

Meanwhile, Minister of Science, Yaakov Peri welcomed the Egyptian president’s initiative, saying the plan reveals great generosity and demonstrates that regional shifts favour Israel. However Peri questioned the possibility of its success, pointing out that the Palestinian people would never allow any leadership to agree to such a proposal.

Despite denials by both Cairo and Ramallah of the proposal, Israeli Radio political correspondent Il’il Shahar confirmed the news noting that Israel Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and his cabinet are fully informed of the Egyptian proposal.

During the Good Morning Israel program aired on the radio Tuesday morning, Shahar pointed out that Netanyahu’s cabinet’s silence proves that Israel is aware of the Egyptian offer, noting that it has been designed through US, Israeli and Egyptian coordination.