The State Department said Thursday that it “regrets” Israel’s decision Wednesday to bar an influential Palestinian leader from the West Bank and Gaza Strip for six months.
The leader, Faisal Husseini, head of the Institute for Arab Studies in East Jerusalem, advocates civil disobedience against Israel Defense Force troops stationed in the administered territories.
“We believe that Israelis and Palestinians need to search for ways to expand, not to restrict dialogue,” said deputy State Department spokesman Richard Boucher.
“We regret this decision, coinciding as it does with increased opportunities for moving the peace process forward toward an Israeli-Palestinian dialogue,” he said. “We hope that this decision will be re-examined.”
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