Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu called this weekend’s West Asia peace conference in Paris “rigged” on Thursday, with his government refusing to play any role in the meeting.
“It’s a rigged conference, rigged by the Palestinians with French auspices to adopt additional anti-Israel stances,” Mr. Netanyahu said while meeting Norwegian Foreign Minister Borge Brende.
Sunday’s conference to be attended by some 70 nations is aimed at exploring ways to restart long-stalled Israeli-Palestinian peace efforts.
Israel rejects the conference and calls for bilateral talks. The Palestinians have welcomed the multilateral approach, saying years of negotiations have not ended Israel’s occupation of the West Bank.
Israeli-Palestinian peace efforts have been at a standstill since a U.S.-led initiative collapsed in April 2014.
The conference comes on the heels of a landmark UN Security Council resolution passed on December 23 calling for a halt to Israeli settlement building in Palestinian territory.
Israel fears this weekend’s conference will produce measures that could then be taken to the Security Council and approved before January 20 — when Donald Trump takes charge as U.S. President. — AFP
