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| Israel-Palestine-Jordan |
| Abbas demands settlement halt at Arafat rally |
| 2009-11-12 |
| [Al Arabiya Latest] Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas again called for a halt to Israeli settlement building before he would resume peace talks with Israel, accusing it of trying to scupper Palestinian statehood. Addressing supporters of his Fatah party in Ramallah on the 5th anniversary of the death of his predecessor Yasser Arafat, Abbas said United Nations resolutions called for there to be a "clear framework" for talks to end over 60 years of conflict. "We cannot go to negotiations without a framework. And we say the framework is U.N. resolutions, meaning a return to the 1967 borders," Abbas said. "What's new in this demand? Also, we want a full stop to settlements, including natural growth and in Jerusalem," the 74-year-old leader said. But Israel's hawkish Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has refused to freeze settlements, and in recent weeks Washington has backed down, calling on both sides to return to the negotiating table without preconditions. |
| Posted by:Fred |