West Bank talks first at high level for years

RAMALLAH－Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas met on Sunday night with Israeli Defense Minister Benny Gantz in the West Bank city of Ramallah, a senior Palestinian official said.

Hussein al-Sheikh, a member of the central committee of the Fatah party that Abbas heads, said in a statement the two men discussed all aspects of Israeli-Palestinian relations.

The meeting in Ramallah was the first of its kind since 2014, when peace negotiations between the two sides stopped.

Gantz discussed with Abbas ways to improve relations and boost the economy of the Palestinian Authority, Israeli media reported.

On July 20, Gantz wrote on Twitter that he spoke with Abbas on the phone to express "well wishes on the occasion of Eid al-Adha", adding that "trust-building between Israel and the Palestinian Authority will benefit the economy and security of the entire region".

The Gantz-Abbas meeting came just after Israeli Prime Minister Naftali Bennett was received at the White House by US President Joe Biden. The Biden administration views Abbas as an essential player in any efforts to resume long-stalled talks on the terms of Palestinian statehood.

The halt to the peace process, in April 2014, followed nine months of negotiations sponsored by the United States. No tangible progress was made on issues such as borders, security, and Israeli settlements in Palestinian areas.

The day that Gantz and Abbas met, hundreds of Palestinians gathered along the separation fence with Israel, setting tires on fire and throwing explosives as Gaza's Hamas rulers pressed ahead with a campaign aimed at pressuring Israel to ease a stifling blockade of the territory.

Border protest

It was the second consecutive nighttime border protest and took place hours after Israeli warplanes carried out a series of airstrikes on alleged Hamas targets in response to the unrest. Hamas officials have promised to hold nightly protests all week.

"The Zionist occupation bears all the repercussions and consequences of the tightening of the siege on Gaza and the escalation of the humanitarian crisis among its residents," Hamas spokesman Fawzi Barhoum said. "No calm or stability will be achieved as long as our people lack a free and dignified life."

The Israeli military said that protesters, aside from setting tires alight, lobbed explosives toward Israeli troops, and that its forces took unspecified measures to disperse the crowd. The Palestinian Health Ministry said one protester was shot and suffered moderate wounds. No further details were immediately available.

Israel says the blockade, which tightly restricts the movement of goods and people in and out of Gaza, is needed to prevent Hamas from building up its military capabilities. Critics say that it has devastated the economy and amounts to collective punishment.

Israel has tightened the blockade since an 11-day war against Hamas in May while Egypt tries to broker a long-term cease-fire. Israel has demanded that Hamas return the remains of two soldiers and release two Israeli civilians in exchange for easing the blockade.

Xinhua - Agencies