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Abbas' meeting with Gantz unlikely to soothe Palestinians

The Palestinian president's meeting with the Israeli defense minister comes at a time of frustration among Palestinians with Abbas.
ABBAS MOMANI/AFP via Getty Images

Less than 24 hours after Israeli Prime Minister Naftali Bennett had returned from his meeting with US President Joe Biden, Israeli Defense Minister Benny Gantz met with Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas. Where they met is unknown as no photos or videos have been released. The first news of the meeting was a tweet by the Palestinian minister of civil affairs and the lead liaison with the Israelis, Hussein Al Sheikh. At 17 minutes past midnight on Aug. 30, he tweeted, "President Mahmoud #Abbas met this evening in #Ramallah with Mr. Benny #Gantz, they have discussed the Palestinian-Israeli relations on all aspects."

Gantz shared the news in two tweets. At 12:30 a.m. he explained, ”This evening I met with PA Chairman Mahmoud Abbas to discuss security-policy, civilian and economic issues. I told Chairman Abbas that Israel seeks to take measures that will strengthen the PA’s economy," he wrote.

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