HAARETZ: Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas promised U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry that the new government that will be formed following the Palestinian reconciliation will recognize Israel, State Department Spokeswoman Jen Psaki said Friday.
Psaki said that Abbas told Kerry that the future unity government with Hamas will be his government and represent his policies – it will recognize Israel, abide by past agreements and will renounce violence. “It’s a positive thing,” she said.
“[Kerry’s] view is this is a moment of transition and part of the process. We are in a holding period where parties need to figure out what is next,” Psaki told reporters. “We have always thought there could be a point where we needed to pause and both sides needed to look at what was possible. And we’re clearly at that point now.” … (more)
