JERUSALEM, Aug. 30 (Xinhua) -- Israeli Defense Minister Benny Gantz announced on Monday that Israel will make "goodwill gestures" to the Palestinian authority following his meeting with Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas.
Briefing reporters, Gantz said that during the nightly meeting, he and Abbas agreed on a loan worth 500 million shekels (about 155 million U.S. dollars).
Israel will also recognize the status of thousands of Palestinians who live in the Israel-occupied West Bank without Israeli permits. Most of these Palestinians moved from the Gaza Strip to the West Bank after Hamas, the Islamic Palestinian group that runs Gaza, seized power in the coastal enclave in 2007.
Gantz said the purpose of the meeting was to build trust between Israel and the Palestinian authority without promoting a peace deal.
"I came to the meeting to build trust, keep the Israeli interests and the important ties with the Palestinian authority," Gantz said, adding that he believes Israel should support the Palestinian authority.
"The stronger the Palestinian authority is, the weaker Hamas will be, and the more governance it will have," Gantz said.
The meeting held late on Sunday night was the first between an Israeli minister and the Palestinian president since 2010. Enditem
