Modi may include Palestine to Israel itinerary

Prime Minister Narendra Modi may tag along a short tour to Ramallah with his proposed visit to Jerusalem and Tel Aviv later this year in order to scotch speculation about New Delhi’s departure from its policy of supporting the Palestinian cause in the wake of India’s growing ties with Israel.

As India’s decision to abstain from voting on a resolution in United Nations Human Rights Council on Friday once again fuelled speculation about New Delhi getting too close to Israel to sustain its traditional stand of supporting the cause of Palestine, the Modi government is keen to dismiss such an interpretation.

Modi’s proposed visits to Jerusalem and Tel Aviv are intended to send a strong message about his government’s desire to give a fillip to India’s ties with Israel. He would be the first Indian prime minister to visit Israel, although the two nations formally established diplomatic relations in 1992.

Officials, however, told Deccan Herald that the government was also contemplating a short tour by Prime Minister to Palestine at the end of his tour to Israel.
A senior official in New Delhi said that the prime minister’s tour to Ramallah after his visit to Tel Aviv and Jerusalem would help India maintain a balance and avert hurting its ties with Arab States.

His visit to Ramallah and his meetings with Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas and Prime Minister Rami Hamdallah would also help the government avoid sending out a wrong message to Muslims, both in India and elsewhere in the world. The government is understood to be contemplating a visit by prime minister to some of the Arab States in Persian Gulf before his tour to Israel.

Modi received a congratulatory call from Israel Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu immediately after he took over as the prime minister in May 2014. The two leaders later had a meeting on the sidelines of the United Nations General Assembly in New York in September 2014. Home Minister Rajnath Singh visited Israel in November 2014. Israel’s Agriculture Minister Yair Shamir took part in Vibrant Gujarat meet in Ahmedabad last January. Moshe Ya’alon became Israel’s first defence minister to visit India when he came to New Delhi, met his counterpart Manohar Parrikar and called on Modi.  The prime minister’s visit is likely to focus on boosting counter-terrorism and defence ties between India and Israel.

Apart from political support, India continues to support development and nation-building efforts of Palestine. New Delhi contributes $ 1 million annually to the United Nations Relief and Works Agency for Palestinian Refugees in the Near East. India pledged $4 million in response to the National Early Recovery and Reconstruction Plan for Gaza. New Delhi is also implementing development projects in Palestine, jointly with Brazil and South Africa within the framework of IBSA, and pledged $1 million for a new project to reconstruct the Atta Habib medical centre in Gaza.

The UNHRC on Friday adopted a resolution condemning Israel for alleged war crimes committed by its armed forces during Operation Protective Edge in Gaza and West Bank.