JORDAN: Group of Palestinian and Israeli businessmen appeal to push their governments out of the current political rut and get a step closer toward realising a two-state solution, launching an initiative called 'Breaking the Impasse'

Record ID: 397790

  • Title: JORDAN: Group of Palestinian and Israeli businessmen appeal to push their governments out of the current political rut and get a step closer toward realising a two-state solution, launching an initiative called 'Breaking the Impasse'
  • Date: 25th May 2013
  • Summary: DEAD SEA, JORDAN (MAY 26, 2013) (REUTERS) VARIOUS OF NEWS CONFERENCE (SOUNDBITE) (English) CHAIR OF THE PALESTINIAN BTI GROUP, MUNIB AL MASRI, SAYING: "A group of business people and civic groups from Palestine and from Israel, they put their heads together and said, we've been silent for a long time. They call us the silent majority we're not silent anymore, we're going
  • Embargoed: 9th June 2013 13:00
  • Keywords:
  • Location: Jordan
  • Country: Jordan
  • Topics: Business,Conflict,International Relations,Industry,Politics
  • Reuters ID: LVA5SGHB7RUG87TLT5JTX6EVLJIN
  • Story Text: Nearly 200 leading Israeli and Palestinian business people and executives of some of the largest companies on Sunday (May 26) called for their respective governments to urgently move towards a two-state solution to end the conflict between their two peoples.
    Members of the Breaking the Impasse Initiative (BTI), meeting at the World Economic Forum on the Middle East and North Africa at the Dead Sea, Jordan, said they would leverage their collective business experience and influence to convince leaders on both sides to begin serious negotiations with the goal of reaching a peace agreement.
    The Initiative was launched jointly by Munib R.Masri, Chairman, PADICO Holding, and Yossi Vardi, Chairman, International Technologies Ventures, in May 2012, and has been facilitated by the World Economic Forum.
    "A group of business people and civic group from Palestine and from Israel, they put their heads together and said, we've been silent for a long time. They call us the silent majority we're not silent anymore, we're going to say our opinion in order to have a better life," al Masri said.
    "Munib and I decided to try and to assemble relevant portions of the civic society, which will focus on two things and two things only. We would like to support, to encourage, to trigger, the leaders to go into resolving this conflict," Vardi said.
    "Today we are announcing the existence of this group and we make a commitment and a pledge to continue to find a solution for the two people who are living between the Jordan and the Mediterranean. Enough is enough, too much tears were shed by mothers, there is no family, Israeli family or Palestinian family, which didn't suffer," he added.
    The organisation already counts among its members 200 leading Israeli and Palestinian business people, including executives of some of the largest companies and employers on both sides.
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