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200,000 Palestinians Visit Israel for Ramadan
(Ha'aretz) Avi Issacharoff and Amos Harel - Israeli Defense Minister Ehud Barak spoke Tuesday with PA President Mahmoud Abbas, sending him best wishes for the end-of-Ramadan Id al-Fitr holiday, in an effort to maintain defense-economic cooperation in a period of comatose diplomatic talks. Second-tier Israeli and PA officials in defense and economic posts enjoy excellent relations, featuring almost daily meetings. Israel and the PA share an interest in preserving the unprecedented level of security that continues today in the West Bank. On Tuesday, thousands of Palestinians from the West Bank enjoyed the final hours of Id al-Fitr on Tel Aviv beaches. The quiet that has taken hold allowed 200,000 Palestinians this month to make their first visit to Israel in years. The West Bank has become an island of stability in the region during a period of political turbulence.