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"Once Israel accepts the initiative, adopted by the
Arab summmit in Beirut and presented by (Saudi's
late) King Fahd as a condition for diplomatic
relations, at that exact moment Iraq will normalize
relations with Israel," added Talabani in comments
broadcast Saturday on Israeli radio and television.
Israel regarded Iraq as its number one enemy during
the regime of deposed dictator Saddam Hussein whose
forces fired 39 Scud missiles at the Jewish state
during the Gulf War over Kuwait in 1991.
The subsequent installation of a US-backed interim
administration has led some senior figures within
Israel however to voice hopes of forming relations
with Iraq with whom it is still officially at war.
In an interview with the US-funded Alhurra
television network last June, Foreign Minister
Silvan Shalom said that Israel saw no reason not to
have diplomatic ties with Iraq but that he would
"let the Iraqi people decide".
Although the two countries are still technically at
war, Talabani, who is a Kurd whom many in Israel
consider a friend, said that "there is no hostility
between Iraq and Israel".
AFP
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