British Foreign Secretary William Hague Tuesday said the year 2013 offers new opportunities for peace in the Middle East. Hague said in a statement after meeting Arab League Secretary General Nabil Al-Arabi that they discussed the Middle East peace process and agreed that 2013 offers new opportunities to end the Palestinian-Israeli conflict through negotiations. “We expressed the shared hope that this year will be the ‘year of peace' for Palestinians, Israelis and all people of the region," he said. The Arab League and European Union member states need to assist the Palestinian Authority to overcome its current financial difficulties and that Israel should fulfill its obligations to transfer customs revenues due to the Palestinian Authority, said the British official. The two officials also discussed the current situation in Syria and efforts to achieve a political transition and an end to the violence, according to a report of Palestine News and Information Agency "WAFA."
