Netanyahu calls Abbas for Ramadan, urges peace

PM tells PA president he hopes US Secretary of State Kerry's efforts to renew negotiations will show results.

By REUTERS, JPOST.COM STAFF
netanyahu makes phone call 370 (photo credit: REUTERS)
netanyahu makes phone call 370
(photo credit: REUTERS)
Prime Minister Binyamin Netanyahu on Sunday telephoned Palestinian Authority President Mahmoud Abbas and said he hoped the two sides could resume peace talks, stalled for three years, Israeli officials said.
Netanyahu offered greetings for the Muslim holy month of Ramadan, his office said, adding that he told Abbas: "I hope we will have the opportunity to speak with one another not only during festivals, and will start negotiating. It's important."
US Secretary of State John Kerry has in recent months mounted shuttle visits in the hope of reviving negotiations.
"I hope Secretary of State Kerry's efforts will show results," Netanyahu said, according to the Israeli statement.
Over the weekend, Nablus mayor Ghassan Shaka'a warned that a stalled peace process could lead to Palestinian violence, and improve Hamas' popularity in the West Bank.
“[Kerry] is a man for peace,” the Nablus mayor said. “Give him the chance to succeed. By sticking to this course, we may end up losers, but we won’t be the only losers.”
Former Shin Bet head Yuval Diskin released an opinion piece recently in which he expressed his concerns that success for the peace process is becoming a dimmer prospect everyday, specifically due to its lack of prominence among the Israeli public's priorities.
Netanyahu's call to Abbas, follows up a video he released at the beginning of the Ramadan holiday in which he expressed his holiday wishes for Muslims living in Israel.