“We must pull out from Gaza,” Olmert said. “Gaza is Palestinian and not Israeli.”
Former Israeli Prime Minister Ehud Olmert has reiterated that Gaza belongs to the Palestinians and should be part of a future Palestinian state. He made the statement at the People’s Peace Summit in Jerusalem alongside former Palestinian Authority foreign minister Nasser Al-Kidwa.
The two leaders are jointly promoting a two-state solution based on Israel’s pre-1967 borders with land swaps.
“Only a two-state solution is a prescription for a dramatic change in the direction of our country and the whole region,” Olmert said.
He stressed that Israel’s military goals in Gaza had already been met, calling for an immediate end to the war. “The hostages should have been back already,” he added.
“We must pull out from Gaza,” Olmert said. “Gaza is Palestinian and not Israeli.”
He proposed a temporary security force to prevent Hamas’s return and a new administration linked to the Palestinian Authority.
“We all understand that we need a new situation in Gaza,” Al-Kidwa said. “We need to do the job.”