Israelis in downtown Tel Aviv were welcomed by something of an unusual sight on Monday: a giant PLO flag hanging on the side of one of the city’s buildings.
The flag was pictured alongside an Israeli one on a massive sign sponsored by left-wing NGO Peace Now. The sign welcomes U.S. President Joe Biden “to the two countries we love the most.”
“We welcome President Biden, a true friend of Israel, and thank him for his efforts to advance Israel’s interests and strengthen it,” Peace Now said in a statement. “This sign seeks to remind the [U.S.] president—an avid supporter of the two-state solution—that a Palestinian state is, first and foremost, an Israeli interest and that the region cannot have a better future without peace with our Palestinian neighbors.”
The statement continued: “Any time is a good time to do the right thing for the State of Israel ... Now that Prime Minister Lapid has spoken with regional leaders and Abu Mazen [P.A. leader Mahmoud Abbas], the next logical step is launching negotiations. Mr. President, welcome to the two countries we love the most. This is your time to act with these leaders to turn the vision into reality.”
A similar incident took place last month, when a sign featuring the Israeli and Palestinian flags and the caption “meant to live together” was draped off a building in the heart of Ramat Gat, a Tel Aviv suburb.
The sign, which sparked a social media firestorm and was removed within hours, was put up in protest of the coalition’s plan to allow its members to vote freely on a bill by Likud MK Eli Cohen seeking to bar waving Palestinian flags on college campuses.
This article first appeared in Israel Hayom.
