BICOM

Israel’s President-elect Reuven Rivlin yesterday said that Jews and Arabs are destined to live together in the Middle East and that he and Palestinian Authority (PA) President Mahmoud Abbas have a “duty” to speak directly.

Rivlin was elected by the Knesset to succeed President Shimon Peres earlier this month and will officially begin his new role in July. Rivlin first became a Likud MK in 1988 and has since served as a government minister and Speaker of the Knesset. Although he personally opposes the two-state solution, Rivlin has said he would not intervene in the decisions of Israel’s elected politicians. He is also known as a staunch defender of Israeli democracy, Arab minority rights and the independence of the Knesset.

Speaking yesterday at a conference of journalists from Jewish publications across the world, Rivlin said, “The residents of the Middle East, Arabs and Jews, must realise that coexistence is not a cruel fate, but rather our destiny … We were not doomed to live together but rather destined to live together.” He added that, “we can’t live without the belief that we can get to a sort of understanding.” However, even if agreement between the two sides is not possible, Rivlin said it is important to remember that, “we share the same geographic region, breathe the same air, drink the same water.”

Rivlin also praised PA President Mahmoud Abbas for his condemnation of the recent kidnapping of three Israeli teenagers in the West Bank, while speaking at a forum of Arab leaders. Rivlin commented, “I see his appeal as an opportunity to restore trust between Israel and the Palestinian Authority.” Although he admitted that he and Abbas have “a lot of differences of opinion,” Rivlin said that, “it is our duty” to communicate directly with each other, “to at least try to understand the position of the other side.” He added, “Constant communication and mutual understanding are required to bridge a gap that for more than 150 years has seemed unbridgeable.”