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Israeli UK Ambassador Speaks of Fresh Peace Initiative
(Guardian-UK) Harriet Sherwood - Israel is pressing for a fresh Middle East peace initiative involving Arab states, Mark Regev, the Israeli ambassador to the UK, told a meeting at the School of Oriental and African Studies (SOAS) in London on Thursday, as pro-Palestinian activists protested outside. Regev said Israel "wants to see larger and greater involvement from the Arab world" in new peace negotiations. Pragmatic Sunni Arab states saw a "convergence of interest" with Israel in relation to Iran and had "significant cards to play," he added. He said that Israel had approached the Trump administration about "trying to get the peace process back on track." Referring to the demonstrators, Regev said, "Israel cherishes freedom of expression and freedom of speech. To the people outside, I would say this: they claim to be the friends of the Palestinians. But by supporting a hardline, maximalist Palestinian position, are they friends of the Palestinian people? They are chanting, 'From the river to the sea, Palestine will be free' - meaning Israel has no right to exist. I'd like to tell them that Israel is not going away."