US in secret deal with Brotherhood over Israel

The Israeli newspaper ‘Yediot Aharonot’ has published an exclusive interview with the US Assistant Secretary of State for Near Eastern Affairs Jeffrey Feltman in which he says the Obama administration has launched dialogue with Muslim Brotherhood in Egypt. The article stated that both sides reached a joint-understanding that the Brotherhood would respect the peace treaty between Egypt and Israel. In response to the question by Smadar Perry, Yediot’s Middle East reporter, about the Palestinian situation, Feltman said he did not believe that reconciliation, which was signed in Cairo in May between Fatah and Hamas, would go through because the differences between the groups were too wide. Feltman also stated that Mahmoud Abbas would not get an independent Palestinian state in case he decided to form a unity government with a "terrorist organisation". About the situation in Syria, Feltman called Syrian President Bashar Al-Assad a “terrorist tool” of the Iranian regime, and asked him to step down from power immediately. He also talked about the Egyptian elections, and confirmed that the US was shocked at the Salafis winning 20 per cent of the vote at the first round of the parliamentary elections, noting that the issue would be central to talks with senior officials in Tel Aviv. Moreover, he clarified the difference between the US's stance on Egypt's Muslim Brotherhood and its stance on Lebanon's‘Hezbollah’, saying: "The US administration can hold talks with the Brotherhood in Egypt, but it considera Hezbollah a terrorist organiaation therefore it does not deal with it at all, despite being a key partner in the current Lebanese government." Feltman reiterated the collaboration and partnership between the United States and Israel in strategic issues with a common interest, "especially in light of the significant changes that is taking place in the Middle East, in recent times." Feltman spends his days shuttling around the Middle East, including trips to: Egypt, Jordan, Palestinian Authority and Israel. Smadar Perry also said that Feltman didn’t ask Tel Aviv to organise a meeting with the Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu.