Netanyahu: Israel ready to negotiate with Syria

Israel is ready for direct negotiations with Syria, Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said.

Netanyahu on Monday told the Knesset Foreign Affairs and Defense Committee that he recently informed French President Nicolas Sarkozy of Israel’s desire to enter into new negotiations without preconditions, such as the Syrian demand before sitting down to talks that any negotiations end in a return to 1967 lines.

The prime minister also said that he told Sarkozy that he would prefer that France take over the mediator’s role from Turkey.

Netanyahu also discussed the threat to Israel from Lebanon to the north.

“If in the past we considered Hezbollah as a sideline militia, today Hezbollah is the real Lebanese army,” he reportedly said. “Hezbollah has replaced the Lebanese army as a significant force; it is arming and organizing as a real army. The Lebanese government and Hezbollah are becoming interwoven in each other – and they will suffer the consequences of any violation against Israel.”