Pakistanis angry over detentions in Times Sq. case Monday, May 24, 2010
ISLAMABAD – Relatives of three men detained by Pakistan for alleged links to the suspect in the attempted Times Square bombing say the men are innocent.
They
AFP - Thursday, August 6TAIPEI (AFP) - - Taiwan's Beijing-friendly government on Wednesday denied boycotting an Australian film festival amid a row over the e
BERLIN (Reuters) - Chancellor Angela Merkel suffered a double blow on Thursday as a senior party ally in east German
Minister seeks closure of anti-Berlusconi websites Wednesday, December 16, 2009
ROME (AFP) - – The Italian government moved Tuesday to close down Internet sites encouraging further violence against Prime Minister Silvio Berlusconi, who
By ELAINE KURTENBACH,AP Business Writer AP - Wednesday, March 18SHANGHAI - Asia's stock market rally seemed to be running out of steam Wednesday, despite an
My Profile
Top News
Reuters top ten news stories delivered to your inbox each day.
Subscribe
You are here:
Home
>
News
>
International
>
Article
Home
Business & Finance
News
U.S.
Politics
International
Technology
Entertainment
Sports
Lifestyle
Oddly Enough
Health
Science
Special Coverage
Video
Pictures
Your View
The Great Debate
Blogs
Weather
Reader Feedback
Do More With Reuters
RSS
Widgets
Mobile
Podcasts
Newsletters
Your View
Make Reuters My Homepage
Partner Services
CareerBuilder
Affiliate Network
Professional Products
Support (Customer Zone)
Reuters Media
Financial Products
About Thomson Reuters
Palestinians say no talks until full settlement halt
Mon Aug 31, 2009 11:24am EDT
Email | Print |
Share
| Reprints | Single Page
[-]
Text
[+]
By Alastair Macdonald
RAMALLAH, West Bank (Reuters) - Palestinian leaders on Monday categorically ruled out holding any peace talks with Israel until a full and lasting freeze in Jewish settlement.
The remarks by President Mahmoud Abbas and one of his senior allies in his Fatah party may aim to step up pressure on U.S. President Barack Obama, who is pushing for negotiations to start in the face of Israeli opposition to a total halt to settlement expansion in the occupied West Bank and East Jerusalem.
In what looked like an acknowledgment by the United States of problems in persuading Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu's right-leaning Israeli coalition to stop settlement completely, a U.S. official said last week that Washington would not insist on a total freeze if the Palestinians would accept something less.
Abbas and Nabil Shaath, former foreign minister and a Fatah Central Committee member, made clear on Monday they would not.
Asked whether he might meet Netanyahu at the U.N. General Assembly around September 23, Abbas told Al Jazeera: "If there is no freeze of settlement activity, and if there is no clear position from Israel on this issue, such a thing would not take place."
Shaath told foreign media in Ramallah that if Obama should ask Fatah to start negotiations after only a partial, temporary settlement freeze: "I would say, Mr. Obama, we love you...but I am sorry this is not enough to bring us to the peace process."
He said Palestinians had met their commitments under the 2003, U.S.-backed "road map" to peace, including curbing violence against Israel, but that Israel had failed to meet its by extending its colonization of territory in the West Bank and East Jerusalem, which it seized in the Middle East war of 1967.
"A total settlement freeze and a commitment to an independent Palestinian state will bring us back to the negotiating table immediately," Shaath said.
He ruled out accepting exemptions to the freeze, including exceptions for building in East Jerusalem or expanding existing settlements to cope with "natural growth" of families there.
"NO EXCEPTIONS"
While Netanyahu and Obama's envoy George Mitchell are, say diplomats, discussing a freeze limited in time, to say six months or a year, Shaath said the only time limit Palestinians would accept was a freeze lasting until a final peace is signed.
He also dismissed Netanyahu's demand that Palestinians recognize Israel as a Jewish state, describing that as a new demand intended to hinder talks and to pre-judge negotiations on whether Palestinian refugees could return to homes in Israel.
Analysts question, however, whether Abbas could refuse for long to take part in talks with Netanyahu if Obama insisted.
Netanyahu, whose five-month-old coalition includes a strong pro-settler wing, has made clear Israel does not want to freeze settlement in the way the Palestinians are demanding.
Though he accepted, following U.S. pressure, that a Palestinian state was a goal of the peace process, he questions whether Abbas, who has lost control of Gaza to Hamas, can give Israel security. Continued...
View article on single page
Share:
Del.icio.us
Digg
Mixx
Yahoo!
Facebook
LinkedIn
Next Article:
Armenia, Turkey move toward diplomatic ties
Also On Reuters
Slideshow
Slideshow: Deadly California wildfire scorches 7,000 acres
Full Coverage: China Investment Summit
Factbox: Marvel vs Disney smackdowns we'd like to see
More International News
U.S., NATO must change to win Afghan war-commander
Fiscal challenges loom for newly elected Japan Democrats
| Video
Armenia, Turkey move toward diplomatic ties
Gaddafi's son says Megrahi got no "hero's welcome"
Dalai Lama tells Taiwan he's dedicated to democracy
| Video
More International News...
Related News
FACTBOX: Factors to watch from Israel, Palestinians
11:24am EDT
Editor's Choice
Slideshow
A selection of our best photos from the past 24 hours. Slideshow
Most Popular on Reuters
Articles
Video
New flu hit estimated 10 percent of New Yorkers
UPDATE 2-Los Angeles wildfire forces thousands from homes
Capitalism the villain as Moore movie hits Venice
U.S., NATO must change to win Afghan war-commander
GM to form China venture, invest $293 million
As hybrid cars gobble rare metals, shortage looms
Disney to acquire Marvel in $4 billion deal | Video
Rolling Stones guitarist's death to be re-examined
Japan Democrats take power, tough challenges loom | Video
LA wildfire doubles, endangers key mountaintop
Most Popular Articles RSS Feed
Video
U.S. fires threaten 10,000 homes
Japan gets new government
Vital road link for Afghanistan
Japanese elect a new leadership
Dalai Lama visits Taiwan
Myanmar refugees flee to China
Missing pilots' remains head home
Trouble brewing for wine industry
China hit by deadly floods
Thousands stranded on Chinese border
Most Popular Videos RSS Feed
Reuters.com:
Help and Contact Us |
Advertise With Us |
Mobile |
Newsletters |
RSS |
Labs |
Journalism Handbook |
Archive |
Site Index |
Video Index
Thomson Reuters Corporate:
Copyright |
Disclaimer |
Privacy |
Professional Products |
Professional Products Support |
About Thomson Reuters |
Careers
International Editions:
Africa |
Arabic |
Argentina |
Brazil |
Canada |
China |
France |
Germany |
India |
Italy |
Japan |
Latin America |
Mexico |
Russia |
Spain |
United Kingdom |
United States
Thomson Reuters is the world's largest international multimedia news agency, providing investing news, world news, business news, technology news, headline news, small business news, news alerts, personal finance, stock market, and mutual funds information available on Reuters.com, video, mobile, and interactive television platforms. Thomson Reuters journalists are subject to an Editorial Handbook which requires fair presentation and disclosure of relevant interests.
NYSE and AMEX quotes delayed by at least 20 minutes. Nasdaq delayed by at least 15 minutes. For a complete list of exchanges and delays, please click here.