Palestine, Israel to meet in Egypt for security meeting

Egypt, Jordan and the US are also set to attend the Sharm El Sheikh meeting on March 19.

Tension escalated across the Palestinian territories in recent weeks amid repeated Israeli military raids into Palestinian towns.
Reuters

Tension escalated across the Palestinian territories in recent weeks amid repeated Israeli military raids into Palestinian towns.

The Palestinian Authority (PA) has said it will participate in a security meeting with Israel in Egypt's Red Sea resort city of Sharm El Sheikh this weekend.

The meeting was "in preparation for the five-party meeting that will be held in Sharm El-Sheikh on Sunday," said the office of Hussein al Sheikh, the secretary of the Palestine Liberation Organization (PLO)'s Executive Committee, in a statement on Wednesday.

 Egypt, Jordan and the US will attend the meeting, due on March 19.

The agreement to participate in the meeting came following a meeting between al Sheikh and US special envoy for Palestinian Affairs Hady Amr in the West Bank city of Ramallah. 

READ MORE: Israeli forces kill 3 Palestinian gunmen in West Bank

The meeting discussed a host of bilateral and regional issues, including the latest developments in the Palestinian territories, the statement said. 

Last month, Palestinian and Israeli delegates attended a meeting in Jordan, along with Egypt and the US, in an effort to ease tension in the Palestinian territories. 

Participants in the meeting agreed to take steps to advance confidence-building measures and to renew security cooperation between the PA and Israel. 

Tension escalated across the Palestinian territories in recent weeks amid repeated Israeli military raids into Palestinian towns. 

According to Palestinian figures, more than 80 Palestinians have been killed by Israeli fire since the beginning of this year. Fourteen Israelis were also killed in separate attacks during the same period.

READ MORE: Palestine groups announce Jenin document to confront Israeli occupation

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