Amid US Secretary of State John Kerry's latest shuttle to the region, a group of Palestinian and Israeli businessmen are set to present what they call a joint appeal to push their governments out of the current political rut and get a step closer toward realizing a two-state solution. The document, aptly titled "Breaking the Impasse," has been kept secret for some time, but the people involved in its masterminding include Palestinian philanthropist and industrialist Munib al-Masri and high-level Israeli businessmen such as high-tech entrepreneur Yossi Vardi.

Many of the Israeli figures involved include former government officials, army generals and military figures who played roles in previous negotiations, and “people who understand that a peace agreement would boost chances for business and job opportunities,” according to Elias Zananiri, a political adviser and public relations consultant closely familiar with the initiative.

The initiative is to be presented during the World Economic Forum (WEF) held at the Dead Sea in Jordan on May 24-26. The Forum, hosted by Jordan's King Abdullah, is slated to be attended by Kerry, Israeli President Shimon Peres and Palestinian Authority (PA) President Mahmoud Abbas.

The initiative was born about a year ago at the WEF Middle East and North Africa conference in Istanbul, according to the Financial Times. Numerous similar initiatives have been taken jointly by Palestinian and Israeli business leaders in the past, but the secrecy surrounding this effort seems to suggest that this may be a more serious undertaking taken at a time when most ideas on how to revive the moribund talks have been exhausted.