U.S. peace team to visit Israel by end of month

WASHINGTON – The US peace team is expected to visit Israel and Saudi Arabia by the end of the month, sources familiar with the matter told The Jerusalem Post.

Jared Kushner, Brian Hook and Avi Berkowitz will arrive in Jerusalem on October 27 and are expected to meet with both Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and Blue and White co-leader Benny Gantz. The purpose of the visit is to gain a better understanding of the coalition formation process, as the team is still considering when it should release the political component of the administration’s peace plan.

From Jerusalem, the team will continue to Riyadh to participate in an economic conference.

US Ambassador to Israel David Friedman said on Wednesday that the administration is waiting for a coalition in Israel to be formed so the plan can be released.

“We want a government, we desperately want a government – we want a government as much as Israelis do,” he told Israel National News in an interview.

“Israel is disserved by having this transitionary [sic] period for so long,” he added. “When the government is formed, no matter who forms the government, we’ll put out the plan, and we’ll do so in a way that we can immediately guide the government’s response to the plan.”

Friedman said no one should be required to leave his home as a part of a future peace agreement.

“Having seen the experience of the evacuation of Gaza, I don’t believe that there is a realistic plan that can be implemented that will require anyone, Jew or Arab, to be forced to leave their home,” Friedman said. “That would be a recipe for disaster. It almost caused a civil war on much, much less aggressive circumstances in Gaza, compared to Judea and