Sources to Asharq Al-Awsat: Egyptian-Jordanian-Palestinian Summit in Cairo Thursday

Jordanian King Abdullah meets with Egyptian President Abdel Fattah Al Sisi and Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas on the sidelines of the Arab summit at the Dead Sea in 2017 (AFP photo)
Jordanian King Abdullah meets with Egyptian President Abdel Fattah Al Sisi and Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas on the sidelines of the Arab summit at the Dead Sea in 2017 (AFP photo)
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Sources to Asharq Al-Awsat: Egyptian-Jordanian-Palestinian Summit in Cairo Thursday

Jordanian King Abdullah meets with Egyptian President Abdel Fattah Al Sisi and Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas on the sidelines of the Arab summit at the Dead Sea in 2017 (AFP photo)
Jordanian King Abdullah meets with Egyptian President Abdel Fattah Al Sisi and Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas on the sidelines of the Arab summit at the Dead Sea in 2017 (AFP photo)

The tripartite Egyptian-Jordanian-Palestinian summit will be held in Cairo on Thursday, an Egyptian source told Asharq Al-Awsat.

He said the meeting aims to unify the Arab position towards the resumption of negotiations with the United States on peace talks.

“The summit should build on a unified Arab stand concerning the resumption of Israeli-Palestinian peace talks, and on the contacts held with Washington following the visit of Director of the US Central Intelligence Agency William Burns to Cairo, Ramallah and Tel Aviv two weeks ago,” the source said.

He added that one of the results of Burns’ talks in the region is the recent meeting held between Israeli Defense Minister Benny Gantz and Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas in Ramallah.

The summit will bring together Jordanian King Abdullah II, Egyptian President Abdel Fattah al-Sisi and Abbas.

A Jordanian source revealed that the summit mainly seeks to coordinate positions over the latest developments in the region ahead of Abbas's trip to the United Nations, where he is expected to deliver a speech.

On Monday, Palestinian Prime Minister Mohammad Shtayyeh said that he is looking forward to the tripartite summit to urge the US administration to fulfill its promise on the establishment of two states and to end “racial” settlements, as well as resolving Israeli occupation of Palestinian lands.



Independent Israeli Commission Blames Netanyahu and Others for October 2023 Attack

A protester walks between vehicles as people protest demanding the release of hostages who were kidnapped during the deadly October 7, 2023 attack, ahead of a possible ceasefire deal between Israel and Iran-backed Hezbollah in Lebanon, in Tel Aviv, Israel, November 26, 2024. (Reuters)
A protester walks between vehicles as people protest demanding the release of hostages who were kidnapped during the deadly October 7, 2023 attack, ahead of a possible ceasefire deal between Israel and Iran-backed Hezbollah in Lebanon, in Tel Aviv, Israel, November 26, 2024. (Reuters)
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Independent Israeli Commission Blames Netanyahu and Others for October 2023 Attack

A protester walks between vehicles as people protest demanding the release of hostages who were kidnapped during the deadly October 7, 2023 attack, ahead of a possible ceasefire deal between Israel and Iran-backed Hezbollah in Lebanon, in Tel Aviv, Israel, November 26, 2024. (Reuters)
A protester walks between vehicles as people protest demanding the release of hostages who were kidnapped during the deadly October 7, 2023 attack, ahead of a possible ceasefire deal between Israel and Iran-backed Hezbollah in Lebanon, in Tel Aviv, Israel, November 26, 2024. (Reuters)

The independent civilian commission of inquiry into the October 2023 Hamas attack on Israel has found Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu directly responsible for the failures leading up to the attack, alongside former defense ministers, the army chief and the heads of the security services.

The civil commission presented its findings today after a four-month probe in which it heard some 120 witnesses. It was set up by relatives of victims of the Hamas attack, in response to the absence of any state probe.

The commission determined that the Israeli government, its army and security services “failed in their primary mission of protecting the citizens of Israel.”

It said Netanyahu was responsible for ignoring “repeated warnings” ahead of Oct. 7, 2023 for what it described as his appeasing approach over the years toward Hamas, and for “undermining all decision-making centers, including the cabinet and the National Security Council, in a way that prevented any serious discussion” on security issues.

The commission further determined that the military and defense leaders bear blame for ignoring warnings from within the army, and for reducing the army’s presence along the Gaza border while relying excessively on technological means.

On the day of the Hamas attack, the report says, the army’s response was both slow and lacking.

The civil commission called for the immediate establishment of a state commission of inquiry into the Oct. 7 attack.

Netanyahu has opposed launching a state commission of inquiry, arguing that such an investigation should begin only once the war is over.