Forty-six percent of the Jewish population in Israel supports renewing peace talks with the new Palestinian National Unity government, if and when it is established, a study conducted by the Geneva Initiative revealed.Israeli news reported that the survey found that 37.4% of Jewish Israelis object to any talks with the Palestinian government, while 16.1% of the surveyed Israelis said that they did not know.
Gadi Baltiansky, Director General of the Initiative said that he is satisfied by the results of the survey, adding that after a six-year standstill of peace talks between Israel and the Palestinians, the new Palestinian National Unity Government is providing an opportunity for Israel to renew peace talks for a permanent solution.
Baltiansky stated that the Initiative conducts surveys on a regular basis, and that these studies show that the majority of the Israelis want the government to return to the negotiating table with the Palestinians.
He also said that the Palestinians “accept the outline of the Geneva Accord as a basis for the permanent solution”, Israeli Ynetnews reported.
Baltiansky added that Israel’s Prime Minister, Ehud Olmert, must rise to the challenge and should start peace talks without any delay.
