CAIRO: Israeli President Shimon Peres traveled to Egypt on Sunday to meet with Egyptian President Hosni Mubarak. The two met at the Presidential palace in Cairo to discuss the state of peace talks between Israelis and Palestinians, the status of Gilad Shalit, an Israeli soldier currently held by Hamas, and the issue of nuclear proliferation in Iran. The two leaders also discussed bilateral issues including ways to prevent arms smuggling from Sinai to the Gaza strip and methods for strengthening cooperation on matters of security and intelligence. After the meeting, President Mubarak expressed his concern for the faltering peace process and outlined Egypt's concerns regarding the resumption of talks. “We want to see a halt to the settlement in the occupied territories, including East Jerusalem, and the continuation of negotiations on the basis of the 1967 lines,” he said, as well as, “an end to the siege of Gaza, and an increase of improvements for the Palestinian people.” President Peres affirmed that Israel is committed to reaching an agreement with the Palestinians. “We want the Palestinians to be happy,” he remarked after the meeting. “The government of Israel is prepared for a solution of two states for two peoples,” he continued, “with the establishment of a Palestinian state alongside Israel.” At a memorial service Monday for David Ben-Gurion, Peres urged Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu to do everything necessary to bring an end to the conflict. “Today, there is just one step left between us and the end of this conflict,†he said, “the current government can and must do it,†the Israeli president argued. He added that the work of dividing the land between the two peoples was something that Ben-Gurion, Israel’s first prime minister, took on himself. Peace talks between the Palestinians and the Israelis have been stalled since December 2008. One of the most contentious issues revolves around the status of Israeli settlements in the West Bank. The two state solution based on the 1967 border would place Israeli settlers within a new Palestinian state. With regard to settlement activity, Peres said that “the minute we shall start to negotiate there won't be new settlements, there won't be confiscation of land.” His statement echoed the Israeli government's position that a settlement freeze should not be a precondition for peace talks, something that Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas views as non-negotiable for the resumption of talks. Mubarak also voiced his concerns about the status of Jerusalem, which both the Israelis and Palestinians view as their capital, remarking that future of the city was something that concerned the entire Islamic world. Peres replied that while Jerusalem was under Israeli sovereignty and any change to its status would require Knesset approval, “[Israel has] no intention of building on the Temple Mount. We respect the Muslims.†The leaders also discussed the status of Gilad Shalit, an Israeli soldiers currently held by Hamas. Shalit was captured by Palestinians after a cross border raid in 2006. Egypt has been involved in the negotiations for his release, and Peres hinted that there had been “progress” in efforts to free him. Some reports speculate that a deal may be announced by Egypt to coincide with the Eid al-Adha holiday this Friday. On the issue of nuclear proliferation, Peres reaffirmed the Israeli government's position as a non-signatory to the Nuclear Nonproliferation Treaty. “Israel does not threaten any party,” he said, “but Iran is threatening the destruction of Israel.” On same day the presidents met, Israeli aircraft bombed two suspected weapons factories and a smuggling tunnel in the Gaza Strip. The attack comes after Hamas’ announcement that militant groups in Gaza had agreed to stop firing rockets into Israel. Al Jazeera reports, however, that groups such as Palestinian Islamic Jihad and the Popular Front for the Liberation of Palestine (PFLP) have denied they ever agreed to such a ceasefire. BM
