Internationally famed Israeli author Amos Oz said he is sure that Israel will negotiate with former Tanzim (Fatah youth movement) leader Marwan Barghouti, in an interview with Italian daily La Stampa.
"I'm sure that someday we will speak with him," Oz said. "Some day Israel will talk to Barghouti, even if he was the instigator of the second Intifada and a large number of suicide bombings and many other terrorist attacks."
Oz sent an Arabic translation of his book A Tale of Love and Darkness to Barghouti's prison cell, with a dedication in Hebrew saying: "This story is our story. I hope you read it and understand us as we understand you. Hoping to see you outside and and in peace. Yours, Amos Oz."
The author told La Stampa that he wanted "to let [Barghoti] understand Israel's reasoning. It was not a symbolic gesture, but one with substance."
He also paraphrased former prime minister Yitzhak Rabin, saying: "We do not make peace with friends, we make peace with the enemy."
Front Page Features