Herzog Proposes Joint Regional Security Council

Israeli Opposition leader Isaac Herzog (Zionist Camp) proposed to U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry on Wednesday that a joint regional security council be convened to grapple with the rise of terror and promote peace, The Jerusalem Post reported.

Herzog further suggested that Egypt, Jordan, Israel and other countries be invited to a summit for this purpose before President Barack Obama leaves office next January.

The idea was put forth during a meeting in Rome with Kerry, at which the latter expressed interest.

Herzog also pursued his agenda of calling for a separation between Israelis and Palestinians, saying that “a separation policy is the only way to move things in the region” forward toward the ultimate goal of the two-state solution.

Herzog’s separation proposal has stirred opposition within his party, but evidently undaunted by it, he has ignored demands for an open debate about it.
“Israelis are being murdered in the streets and the boycott, divestment and sanctions (BDS) movement is gaining focus around the world,” Herzog said. “Israel cannot wait for lengthy diplomatic negotiations.”

“Stop with the big words,” he told Kerry in their fourth meeting in six months. “Our citizens are being murdered and we must engage in the separation process that will serve as the basis for the reality of the two-state solution vision, which I firmly believe is the only solution to the conflict.”