Israel extends 'settlement freeze' to September 30
Haaretz is reporting that Israeli and 'Palestinian' negotiators will meet in Jericho on Monday to discuss an extension of the 'settlement freeze,' with the 'freeze' already extended to September 30 (which is a Jewish holiday - so effectively make that October 1, which is a Friday, so make it October 3) so as to give the sides a full month to work things out. Senior Fatah negotiator Nabil Shaath, who attended the official launch of the direct peace talks in Washington earlier this week, said a United States representative would be present at the meeting, which will also include chief Israeli and Palestinian negotiators Yitzhak Molcho and Saeb Erekat.Don't look for that visit to happen anytime soon. Heh.
The meeting this upcoming week is being held to prepare for the next formal negotiating session, which is scheduled to begin on September 14 in the southern Sinai Red Sea city of Sharm al-Sheikh. Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas, Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, and U.S. Secretary of State Hillary Clinton will all participate in that meeting.
Shaath said that Israel has decided to postpone the expiration date of the contentious West Bank settlement freeze from September 26 to September 30, thus giving the two sides a full month to negotiate before the building freeze expires.
"Israelis claim that they can't continue the settlement freeze while we say that we can’t continue with negotiations if settlement building continues," Shaath said. "We will continue to work seriously until the end of the month."
"We have before us a month during which we will work under the framework of preparatory meetings and summit meetings," Shaath said.
According to Shaath, U.S. President Barack Obama announced that he intends to visit the region in order to move the peace process forward, but an official date has yet to be set.
posted by Carl in Jerusalem @ 9:39 AM
1 Comments:
There has been no freeze since last Wednesday... I checked on all the sites and no official announcement about a freeze extension has been made.
I don't believe it will happen - not after the brutal murders of five Jews last week. The Palestinians want Israel to provide them with an excuse not to talk. Tell them to either come and talk or forget it.
Jews should not be made to suffer for continued Palestinian intransigence.
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