Ra'am leader Mansour Abbas met with Jordan's King Abdullah about a month ago after receiving the approval of Prime Minister Naftali Bennett, Ynet has learned on Tuesday.
Government sources said Abbas received an invitation from the monarch and was initially hesitant to travel to the capital Amman, fearing the meeting make stoke internal tensions within his party.
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Ra'am leader Mansour Abbas, right, and Jordan's King Abdullah II meeting in Amman
(Photo: AFP)
According to Jordan’s Royal Palace, the two discussed recent developments in the West Bank, as well as ways to advance the peace process between Israel and the Palestinians, namely by advancing a two-state solution.
The Jordanian ruler also reportedly stressed his "support of the Palestinians in their efforts to achieve just and legitimate rights."
The palace’s official statement added that MK Abbas, for his part, praised the king's positions on the Palestinian issue, the kingdom's efforts to maintain the status quo in Jerusalem — specifically at the al-Aqsa mosque — and Jordan's support of the Palestinian people in education and the annual pilgrimage to Mecca.
In recent months, King Abdullah hosted a number of senior Israeli officials as part of Prime Minister Naftali Bennett’s efforts to mend relations with Jordan, which deteriorated over the past decade, in part because of tensions at Jerusalem's contested Al-Aqsa compound and Israel's expansion of Jewish settlements in the West Bank.
Said efforts included a meeting between Israel and Jordan's economy ministers in early November whose goal was to “enhance civilian ties between Israel and Jordan, strengthen neighborly relations, and promote cooperation between the two countries.”
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Infrastructure, Energy and Water Resources Minister Karine Elharrar meeting with Jordanian counterpart Muhammad al-Najar, in Amman, Jordan
(Photo: Rafi Ben Hakoon)
In September, Abdullah secretly met with President Isaac Herzog in Amman, for a meeting later described as “warm.”
Abdullah also held a meeting with Prime Minister Bennett in Amman in June where the two leaders discussed bilateral relations and ended with Bennett signing an agreement to double the amount of freshwater Israel provides to Jordan.