Foreign Minister Yair Lapid met Thursday with Jordan's King Abdullah II in a secret meeting, where the two discussed the tensions in Jerusalem, the Foreign Ministry reported.
According to the ministry, the meeting at the King's palace in the kingdom’s capital of Amman, was meant to discuss the potential rise in violence ahead of the [Muslim holy month of] Ramadan.
"We agreed that we should work together, especially in the run-up to Ramadan and Passover, and worry about the tense security situation in Jerusalem." Lapid said.
"Our special relationship with the Kingdom of Jordan promises a better future for our children. Peace is not only about being neighborly, but it is also our moral responsibility to both of our people.”
This was the second meeting Lapid had with the king, the first taking place in September of last year.
Lapid’s office reported that the two also discussed regional and international policy issues, the progress of normalization and peace, as well as joint projects pertaining to renewable energy and trade.
Jordanian news agency “Petra” said that during the meeting the king "emphasized the need to step up efforts to achieve a just and comprehensive peace based on a two-state solution, In a way that will ensure the establishment of a sovereign and sustainable independent Palestinian state along the 1967 lines, with East Jerusalem as its capital.”
Petra further reported that the king "reiterated the need not to harm the historical and legal status quo in Jerusalem, to maintain total peace, and to stop all unilateral measures that undermine the two-state solution."
The meeting was also attended by Jordanian Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Foreign Affairs Ayman Safadi, with whom Lapid also met separately.
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Foreign Affairs Ayman Safadi (R) and Foreign Affairs Minister Yair Lapid
(Photo: Reuters)
Thursday’s meeting follows a string of violent incidents in Jerusalem, the last of which took place last Monday, when two policemen were stabbed and moderately wounded by a Palestinian man near the Old City.
Officials in the defense establishment said there was a need to increase the presence of security forces in the area ahead of April, not only due to Ramadan but also because of Nakba Day, the annual day of commemoration of the "Palestinian Catastrophe," when many Palestinian were displaced as a result of the 1948 Arab–Israeli War.
The officials added that the recent clashes between Palestinians and security forces in the contested neighborhood of Sheikh Jarrah in East Jerusalem have also contributed to the recent spike in tensions in the flashpoint area.
First published: 19:38, 03.10.22