Local Editor
Intensive talks between Washington, Tel Aviv, Cairo and Riyadh are taking place to host a summit in Cairo in which Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu will meet Saudi Crown Prince Muhammad Bin Salman, Hebrew-language daily Israel Hayom reported last week.
The report, citing unnamed top Arab diplomats, said that US State Secretary Mike Pompeo and his team have been conducting talks with Israel and Saudi Arabia for the past several months.
One source quoted in Israel Hayom’s report said that if talks will bear fruit, the Cairo summit could take place in the coming weeks, even before Israel’s general election on March 2.
“Alongside the Egyptian, American, Israeli and Saudi hosts, the leaders of the United Arab Emirates, Sudan, Bahrain and Oman could be present as well,” the unnamed source said in the report.
Bahrain also offered hosting the summit in its capital city of Manama, Israel Hayom mentioned.
In addition, Jordan was sent an invitation to the summit, if and when it will take place, and the Jordanians have begun a round of talks with Arab countries about their stance on the issue.
The report noted that King Abdullah wants Palestinian Authority President Mahmoud Abbas to receive an invitation as well and take part in the summit.
The Jordanians reportedly received messages from Washington indicating there are talks with Ramallah on the matter as Israel expressed an “agreement in principle” for a Palestinian participation in the event.
Source: News Agencies, Edited by Website Team
