VP of Newsrael's Dr. Mordechai Kedar, an expert on the Muslim world, told JNS that the sheikhs' letter to Economy Minister Nir Barkat represents "a turning point."
In a potentially trailblazing development on the peace front, five leading Muslim Arab sheikhs from the Hebron area have signed a letter pledging peace and full recognition of Israel as a Jewish state, according to a commentary in Sunday’s Wall Street Journal.
According to the article, the letter is addressed to Economy Minister Nir Barkat, who has met with sheikhs at his home more than a dozen times since February. The group is asking Barkat to present the letter to Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and await his reply.
Led by Sheikh Wadee’ al-Jaabari, whose clan (Jabari) is said to be the most influential in the region, the leaders’ plan is for Hebron to break out of the Palestinian Authority, establish an emirate of its own and join the Abraham Accords, per the Wall Street Journal report.