President Shimon Peres said that if Gazans renounced violence against Israel, then Gaza would become "open and free" and "flourish." Speaking at an annual reception for Independence Day, the president also said that Palestinian leadership is split between two camps: Fatah, which is "ready to negotiate peace" and "the camp which doesn't denounce terror."
Peres stressed that it was up to the Palestinian people to work towards accepting democratic solutions, and not ones which employ violent means for political ends.
The president also said that Israel has no intentions of intervening in internal Palestinian politics, including the recent unity deal signed between Hamas and Fatah in Cairo.
