Will Oman broker Israeli-Palestinian peace talks?
The Sultanate of Oman has been making the headlines by receiving Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas, followed by Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, raising speculation about an Omani mediation to advance the peace process between Palestinians and Israelis.
Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas met in Ramallah with Omani Foreign Minister Yusuf bin Alawi on Oct. 31. Alawi handed Abbas a message from Sultan Qaboos bin Said Al Said on the peace process in the region.
Palestinian-Israeli relations remain in a political stalemate. In April 2014, Palestinian feuding factions Fatah and Hamas had reached a reconciliation deal and formed a unity government. Israel imposed sanctions on the Palestinian Authority (PA) freezing tax revenues, accusing Abbas of striking a deal with a terrorist entity — Hamas — and halting peace talks with any Palestinian government including Hamas. Israel, however, maintained security coordination with the PA.
This led to the collapse of US-brokered Palestinian-Israeli peace negotiations. Since then, Palestinians and Israelis have not sat at the negotiating table.
However, recently, Palestinians and Israelis made marked political moves toward Oman. In October, both sides visited the sultanate and Omani envoys landed in the Palestinian territories.
