Israeli minister meets Palestinian PM for peace talks

Vartha Bharati | 20-02-2018 | 10:34:00 IST

Jerusalem: Israel's Finance Minister Moshe Kahlon met with Palestinian Prime Minister Rami Hamdallah in the Palestine's West Bank city on Monday, and called on to renew the long-stalled peace talks.

The rare meeting was attended also by the Israeli Coordinator of Government Activities in the Territories (COGAT) Major General Yoav Mordechai, and Deputy Finance Minister Itzik Cohen, Xinhua reported.

The meeting was focused on security and financial issues, including the activity of Palestinian banks, building new industrial zones in the Israeli-occupied West Bank, and creating new jobs in the unemployment-stricken area.

Kahlon urged the Palestinians to return to the negotiating table with the United States as a mediator.

"The Americans are the only honest broker in the region," he said, adding that the talks should be restarted through the involvement of US President Donald Trump's Middle East envoy, Jason Greenblatt.

The Palestinians denounced the White House as a biased broker following Trump's recognition of Jerusalem as the capital of Israel on December 6.

The meeting marked a rare talk between Israeli and Palestinian officials, after the last round of peace talks reached an impasse in 2014.

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Three arrested for throwing egg on BJP MLA Munirathna in Bengaluru

25-12-2024 ¦ 25-12-2024 IST

BJP MLA Munirathna

Bengaluru, Dec 25: Three people were arrested for throwing an egg at BJP MLA Munirathna during an event here on Wednesday, police said.

The MLA was participating in an event to mark the birth anniversary of former Prime Minister Atal Bihari Vajpayee at Nandini Layout in the city when miscreants threw an egg at him, a police officer said.

The MLA accused Deputy Chief Minister D K Shivakumar, his brother and former MP D K Suresh, and their confidantes of "orchestrating" the attack.

"This was an attempt to kill me. Nearly 150 people were brought in to finish me. I would have been killed if my supporters and policemen were not present. D K Shivakumar, D K Suresh, Hanumantharayappa, and some others were involved," Munirathna alleged.

Shivakumar, who was in Belagavi, rejected the allegation, saying he was busy preparing for the centenary celebrations of the 1924 Indian National Congress session, which was presided over by Mahatma Gandhi.

Suresh also dismissed the charge, claiming that Munirathna was "threatening" Congress workers in his area.

He alleged that the MLA had staged the attack to divert public attention from the issue.

Karnataka Home Minister Parameshwara confirmed the arrests. "Three people have been arrested. The investigation is ongoing to identify who they are and why they did it," he told reporters.

BJP state president B Y Vijayendra condemned the attack.

"Such an attack is not just an insult to Munirathna, but the entire state. Just because you (Congress) are in power, you are attacking people. An attack on a public representative is highly condemnable," Vijayendra told reporters.

Union Minister Pralhad Joshi and former Minister C T Ravi also condemned the incident.

Munirathna, who is facing several police cases, including a rape case, was recently released on bail.

Egged in #Bengaluru #BJP MLA (Rajarajeshwarinagar) Munirathna, who is out on bail in a rape case, was struck on his head with an egg near Kanteerava Studio in the northern part of the city. He blamed his political detractors for the attack. pic.twitter.com/wcLoKVXaKr
— TOI Bengaluru (@TOIBengaluru) December 25, 2024

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