AL-QUDS
By Abdel-Raouf Arnaout
Israeli Strategic Affairs Minister Yuval Steinitz has described Palestinian Authority (PA) President Mahmoud Abbas as the "world's number-one anti-Semitic leader."
"There's no doubt that Abu Mazen [Abbas] is now worthy of the title of number-one anti-Semitic leader in the world," Steinitz was quoted by Israeli daily The Jerusalem Post as saying during a Wednesday address delivered at the Institute for National Security Studies in Tel Aviv.
"The incitement is present in Palestinian schoolbooks, on state-sponsored television and on websites, including Abbas's official site… not just against Israel, but against Jews," the minister was quoted as saying.
Abbas made a number of statements earlier in January expressing his refusal to recognize Israel as the "Jewish" state – a major sticking point in ongoing Palestinian-Israeli talks.
But he reiterated his commitment to finding a two-state solution to the dispute by which an independent Palestinian state would be established on lands occupied by Israel in 1967.
"If [an] agreement is signed… it will be a political agreement," Steinitz said. "But to talk about peace or a peace agreement under these conditions – unless we see a change in the root – is an illusion."
He added: "We won't receive peace from a Palestinian Authority led by Abu Mazen."
There was no comment from the PA regarding Steinitz' remarks.
US-brokered peace talks between the two sides resumed last July after a three-year hiatus.
Results of the talks – which are focused on final-settlement issues including borders, Israeli settlements, Jerusalem and the return of Palestinian refugees – have yet to be announced.
englishnews@aa.com.tr
