Abbas reaches out to Israeli centrists

The Palestinian president wants to meet with newly elected Israeli members of the Knesset to lay out his views on peace, hoping a political surge of centrists will provide an opening to resume long-stalled negotiations on a Palestinian state, a senior aide said Thursday.

President Mahmoud Abbas’s main target appears to be Yair Lapid, leader of the moderate Yesh Atid party (There Is a Future), who is expected to be influential in setting the priorities of the next government.

Lapid has said he wants Israel to make a serious push for peace, though it is unclear how far he will press the issue in coalition negotiations with Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu. In recent public appearances, he has barely broached the issue, focusing instead on domestic economic concerns.

In elections this week, Lapid’s party emerged as the second largest with 19 of 120 seats in parliament, after Netanyahu’s right-wing Likud-Yisrael Beiteinu bloc that won 31 seats. Netanyahu will keep his job, but will have to bring other parties into his government to win a parliamentary majority. Lapid’s faction is seen as key to any stable coalition.

Lapid campaigned on a domestic agenda that included ending draft exemptions and government stipends for ultra-Orthodox Jews. But two incoming legislators from his party said Thursday making peace with the Palestinians is just as important to him.

Lapid might be forced to choose between those two issues because it seems nearly impossible to form a coalition that will deal with both.

Abbas and his advisers were surprised by the strong showing of centre-left parties in the election, after opinion polls predicted a solid majority for religious and right-wing parties opposed to concessions to the Palestinians. Instead, hawkish and religious parties won a total of 61 seats, compared to 59 for centreleft and Arab parties. But Netanyahu has said he wants a broad majority to ensure stability and address domestic issues.

Hoping to capitalize on the results, Abbas will invite representatives of Israeli parliament factions to discuss prospects for negotiations, Abbas aide Yasser Abed-Rabbo said.

“We invite the Israeli parties, particularly the new ones, for dialogue on future accords,” Abed Rabbo said.

Asked whether he would accept the invitation, Lapid’s office said: “These are sensitive issues which are not to be dealt with through the media.”