OMAN AND Qatar have indicated a willingness to resume ties with Israel in return for Jerusalem agreeing to halt construction at West Bank Jewish settlements.
Israeli media reported yesterday that the gesture from the two Gulf states was relayed to Israeli officials by American mediators who are trying to reach a formula to relaunch peace talks between Israel and the Palestinians.
The Palestinian leadership has linked a resumption of bilateral negotiations to a commitment from Israel to stop building in the West Bank and east Jerusalem. However, Israeli prime minister Benjamin Netanyahu has rejected pressure from Washington to declare a moratorium on settlement construction.
Israel is reportedly willing to agree to a temporary building freeze of up to six months on condition that the move is met with reciprocal moves by Arab states towards normalisation.
Washington is pushing for a halt to construction of at least a year, and President Barack Obama’s Middle East envoy, George Mitchell, is scheduled to meet in London later this month with Mr Netanyahu.
Neither Oman nor Qatar have ever had full diplomatic ties with Israel. Oman cut relations in 2000 following the outbreak of the second Palestinian intifada uprising, and Qatar closed its interest office in Tel Aviv earlier this year in response to Israel’s military offensive in Gaza.
Israel attaches great importance to improving ties with the Arab world parallel to conducting peace talks with the Palestinians.
Until now the position of the Arab League has been that normalisation can come only after a comprehensive peace treaty is concluded resulting in the establishment of a Palestinian state. US officials hope that a deal to resume Israeli-Palestinian talks can be reached ahead of the UN General Assembly session in September.