“Walla”, an Israeli news website, published a story last week claiming that Israeli Justice Minister Tsipi Livni attended a dinner in New York with foreign ministers and senior officials from a number of Arab nations, among them some that do not have diplomatic relations with Israel.
Livni, a former foreign minister, was in New York last Monday, officially to attend a formal event organized by former US president Bill Clinton and former secretary of state Hillary Clinton, who is expected to run for president in 2016.
However, according to “Walla”, following the event, she was invited to a small dinner of about 20 people that was closed to the media.
Among the attendees were Arab League Secretary General Nabil al-Arabi, Lebanese Foreign Minister Gebran Bassil, Egyptian Foreign Affairs Minister Sameh Shukri, Jordan’s Foreign Mnister Nasser Judeh, Kuwaiti Foreign Minister Sheikh Khaled al-Sabah and United Arab Emirates Foreign Minister Abdullah bin Zayed.
Also in attendance was Saudi Prince Turki bin Faisal al-Saud, former director of Saudi intelligence and a former ambassador to the US, who told Livni warmly at a security conference in Munich earlier this year that he understood “why you are the negotiator for Israel.”
The group, that reportedly also included Canadian Foreign Minister John Baird and Former Undersecretary General Terje Larsen, revolved around various regional issues, including Israel-Palestinian peace prospects and fighting terrorism.
However, an official source in the Lebanese Foreign Ministry assured Sunday that Bassil did not meet or hold talks with any Israeli official on the sidelines of his presence at the United Nations General Assembly, voicing surprise that such a fabricated story would get any attentions whatsoever.
As for his part, al-Arabi also denied in a statement any reports claiming that he met with Israeli Justice Minister Tsipi Livni on the sidelines of the UNGA.
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