Iain Dale: Why Middle East Handshake Offers Real Hope Of Peace

30 September 2016, 18:11 | Updated: 30 September 2016, 18:19

Palestinian president Mahmoud Abbas and Israeli prime minister Benjamin Netanyahu shared a handshake at the funeral of Shimon Peres - and Iain Dale thinks it's a truly positive sign.

"I am no fan of Mr Netanyahu, but it is possible that he could be succeeded by someone with a slightly more flexible view of life," said Iain.

WATCH: Netanyahu And Abbas Shake Hands

Responding to the negativity of his previous caller Oz, who doubted that the handshake would lead anywhere, Iain was far more positive.

"I think if you just give up, then you would never have peace anywhere in the world.

"Some of the most intractable disputes over the last 20 years have now been solved - look at Northern Ireland, look at South Africa, look at what's happened in Columbia over the past few weeks.

"There has to be hope that at some point, the same sort of thing could happen in the Middle East."