Gatz hosts Palestinian leader Abbas at his home

Defense Minister Benny Gantz was the first top Israeli official in 11 years to invite Palestinian Authority chairman Mahmoud Abbas to cross over for a visit. After the meeting on Tuesday at his home at Rosh Ha’Ayin (a town 17km east of Tel Aviv),  Gantz tweeted: “We discussed the implementation of economic and civilian measures and emphasized the importance of security coordination and preventing terror and violence for the wellbeing of both Israelis and Palestinians.” Abbas commented only that they discussed creating a “horizon for peace.” They talked for two and-a-half hours, part of the time without advisers. Gantz promised Abbas to continue advancing “confidence-building measures in civil and economic fields.”