RUTHFULLY YOURS

A letter signed by 369 members of the U.S. House of Representatives, Republicans and Democrats alike, calls on Palestinian Authority President Mahmoud Abbas to condemn the recent violence in Israel and renew direct peace negotiations.

The lawmakers asked Abbas to end incitement, continue security cooperation with Israel and agree to renew peace talks without conditions.

The letter directly accuses Abbas and other Palestinian Authority figures of making inflammatory statements and false claims that have increased tensions.

“Unless immediate action is taken to end incitement and bring the situation under control, this escalating violence — including stabbings, shootings and other terrorist acts — will undermine the prospects of a two-state solution,” reads the letter initiated by Rep. Ed Royce (R-Calif.), the House Foreign Affairs Committee chairman, and New York Rep. Eliot Engel, the top Democrat.

The letter comes ahead of Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s Washington visit next week.

The American Israel Public Affairs Committee praised the move and released a statement with similar criticism of Abbas, saying, “Inflammatory and baseless remarks about the Temple Mount made by President Abbas and other Palestinian leaders have helped create an incendiary atmosphere resulting in death and injuries to scores of Israelis.”