Kadima rejects Israel Beiteinu's meeting invite quip

Party offers Livni tongue-in-cheek invitation to faction meeting to present proposals raised in peace talks, leaked in 'Palestine Papers.'

By JPOST.COM STAFF
Livni Abu Ala 311 (photo credit: Itzki Edri)
Livni Abu Ala 311
(photo credit: Itzki Edri)
The office of Kadima Leader Tzipi Livni on Tuesday rejected a tongue-in-cheek invitation by Israel Beiteinu to attend the party's faction meeting in order to present proposals to swap Arab border towns in pre-1967 Israel that Al-Jazeera reported she had raised during negotiations with the Palestinians.
"Israel Beiteinu's invitation is ridiculous," a Kadima statement said. "We do not address publications by Al-Jazeera, and as time passes, more and more doubts are raised about their reliability. Israel Beiteinu, not for the first time, deals with headlines and not the essence, Had they read the details they would see that there is no link between what was written in the Al-Jazeera documents themselves and the very problematic proposals by [Foreign Minister Avigdor] Lieberman."
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Livni's office added that "if Israel Beitienu wants to hang on Livni's words - then hang on the unequivocal assertion that there is a partner with whom we can reach a permanent agreement that will end the conflict while still preserving the national and security interests of Israel."
Environment Minister Gilad Erdan (Likud) mocked Livni from the Knesset podium on Tuesday, saying that "Thanks to Al-Jazeera, we know that Livni's views are not far from those of Israel Beiteinu."
At a Knesset conference on the fate of the Negev and Galilee, Livni responded to both Israel Beiteinu and Likud officials.
"Today I heard there were parties that were happy to hear what it has been reported that I said," Livni told the crowd. "But my outlook [on how to make peace] is all encompassing. You can't take only one part of it out of context that you might like. Everyone is invited to endorse all of it."
Both Livni and her Kadima rival Shaul Mofaz declined to respond to a report in The Guardian that Palestinian negotiator Ahmed Qurei volunteered to help Livni's campaign for the Kadima leadership two years ago.
"I would vote for you," Querei is quoted as saying.
According to the report, Livni responded that he would not have a difficult dilemma deciding who to vote for, because her competition was Mofaz.