Tag Archive for peace talks

| August 30, 2013
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Interior Minister Saar: Returning to ‘1967 Borders’ Are Out of the Question

Interior Minister Saar said that Israel will never agree to the Abbas’ demands that Israel withdraw to the indefensible 1949 Armistice Line, the ‘Auschwitz borders’.

By Elad Benari

 

Interior Minister Gideon Saar (Likud) said on Thursday that Israel will never agree to pull back to the indefensible pre-1967 borders as part of a peace agreement with the Palestinian Authority (PA).

Saar made the remarks during a toast in honor of Rosh Hashanah (the Jewish New Year) which he hosted in Tel Aviv. The event was attended by ministers, Knesset members and mayors.

Saar explained that Israel was obliged to resume negotiations with the PA in order to maintain a series of security and international interests, but stressed that this time around it was necessary to negotiate using a different approach. Continue Reading »

Category: Israel News | Tags: , ,
| August 27, 2013
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Justice Minister Livni ‘Undermining Israel’s Interests’ in Peace-Talks

PM Netanyahu reportedly concerned over Livni’s independent “promises” to Abbas’ negotiators & the U.S., including dividing Jerusalem.

By Gil Ronen

 

Daily newspaper Maariv reported Tuesday that there are differences of opinion and approach between the two heads of Israel’s negotiating team in talks with the Palestinian Authority (PA) – Justice Minister Tzipi Livni, and Attorney Yitzhak Molcho, who represents Prime Minister Binyamin Netanyahu.

While Livni wants large negotiation teams and a signing of a permanent status deal at the end of the nine months allotted to the “peace process” negotiations, Molcho is opposed to this approach and at this point is interested only in reaching an agreement on principles regarding the core issues. Continue Reading »

Category: Israel News | Tags: ,
| August 27, 2013
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Mudar Zahran: A Palestinian State in Jordan is ‘Inevitable’

Zahran, the Jordanian-Palestinian dissident, didn’t pull any punches Sunday afternoon, speaking at a conference entitled “Two States for Two People, on Two Sides of the Jordan River.”

By Ari Soffer

 

Jordanian-Palestinian activist Mudar Zahran is not a man who minces his words. In fact, his outspokenness against the Jordanian regime has made him a persona-non-grata in his own country, forcing him to seek asylum in the UK.

Mudar Zahran

Mudar Zahran

Zahran did not pull any punches Sunday afternoon, speaking at a conference entitled “Two States for Two People, on Two Sides of the Jordan River.” Deriding the Jordanian ruling elite as “Armani-wearing, English-speaking autocrats” he called on all parties to consider a radically different track to the current peace initiatives based off of a “Two State Solution” which would see a Palestinian Authority-run state in Judea and Samaria. Continue Reading »

Category: Mid-East News | Tags: , , , , ,
| August 26, 2013
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Abbas cancelled peace-talks after 3 Arabs killed when attacking IDF

Palestinian official: Next peace-talks meeting canceled after Israel security personnel killed 3 Arabs in violent West Bank clashes. Abbas spokesman warns of “repercussions” to incident.

By JPOST.COM STAFF
 

 

The Palestinian Authority has canceled a meeting with Israeli peace negotiators scheduled to take place Monday in response to the killing of three Palestinians by Israeli security forces at the Kalandiya refugee camp in the West Bank earlier in the day, AFP quoted a Palestinian official as saying.

Palestinian negotiator Saeb Erekat and Israeli negotiator Tzipi Livni at a press conference, July 30

Palestinian negotiator Saeb Erekat and Israeli negotiator Tzipi Livni at a press conference, July 30 – Photo: REUTERS/Jonathan Ernst

Security forces who arrived in Kalandiya near Ramallah to arrest a security suspect came under a  large scale attack by hundreds of Palestinians on Monday morning, resulting in deadly clashes in which three rioters were reportedly killed.

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| August 25, 2013
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Danon: IDF Covert Ops in Syria? Ridiculous!

Deputy defense minister Danon says Likud will be tested if Livni succeeds in negotiating a “peace” deal.

“I read about training and support (in Syria) but these are baseless rumors,”reported Danon.

By Gil Ronen

 

Deputy Defense Minister Danny Danon said Sunday that reports about the presence of Israeli covert operations units in Syria, or Israeli training of rebel units, are unfounded.

“I read about training and support but these are baseless rumors,” he told Arutz Sheva in an in-depth interview. “Israel will not get involved in what happens in Syria. We are following matters with concern, and if our interests are harmed, we will not ask who fired the shots and in which direction, and just as we did in the past, we will act with determination to protect our interests.” Continue Reading »

Category: Israel News | Tags: , ,
| August 25, 2013
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French Foreign Minister in Ramallah, next Jerusalem

Abbas meets with French Foreign Minister Laurent Fabius in Ramallah who urges Israel to stop settlement activities.

By DPA

 

 

Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas said Saturday that there is “nothing” preventing him from personally meeting with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu.

Mahmoud Abbas and Laurent Fabius

Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas (R) and France’s Foreign Minister Laurent Fabius shake hands after addressing the media following their meeting in the West Bank city, Ramallah, August 24. – Photo: Reuters

The comments come nearly one month after direct peace talks between the two sides resumed after a three-year stalemate.

“There is nothing at all that prevents a meeting with Israeli Prime Minister Netanyahu at the right time for us to meet or at a time we need to meet,” Abbas said in Ramallah at a press conference with visiting French Foreign Minister Laurent Fabius. Continue Reading »

Category: Mid-East News | Tags: , , ,
| August 23, 2013
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Gazans protest against having Israeli-Palestinian peace talks

 

Hamas leader: Abbas doesn’t have the right to relinquish any piece of Palestinian land. Returning to talks is a blow to jihad & to our sacrifices.

By JPOST.COM STAFF

 

 

 

Hundreds of Palestinians on Friday protested in the Gaza Strip against the recently renewed Israeli-Palestinian peace talks, AFP reported.

Israeli Arabs wave Palestinian flags during a rally, April 2007.

Israeli Arabs wave Palestinian flags during a rally, April 2007.- Photo: REUTERS/Ammar Awad

The marches, reportedly organized by Hamas and Islamic Jihad, condemned rival West Bank-based Palestinian Authority President Mahmoud Abbas’s “political failure” for returning to the negotiating table with Israel.

Protesters commenced marching from various mosques across the enclave toward a square in central Gaza City, according to AFP.

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Category: Mid-East News | Tags: , ,
| August 21, 2013
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PA Threatens to Sue Israel in Int’l Court Over Building New Homes

Contrary to the spirit of making peace with Israel,  Palestinian Authority member is threatening to sue Israel over building plans they were informed about prior to the commencement of negotiations.

By Ari Soffer

 

The Palestinian Authority threatened Wednesday to sue Israel through international bodies if it continues expanding Jewish communities in Judea, Samaria and Jerusalem, warning that they would put an end to talks unless building in Jewish areas came to a halt.

“These are not just dots on a map,” PLO (Palestinian Liberation Organization) executive committee member Hanan Ashrawi said of more than 2,000 new Jewish homes which were approved for construction ahead of a resumption of peace negotiations late last month. Continue Reading »

Category: Mid-East News | Tags: , , ,
| August 21, 2013
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PA Erekat: The U.S. Guaranteed us Every Preconditions Will be Met

Chief PA negotiator claims: Before Abbas agreed to enter into peace talks, the U.S. guaranteed the PA, in writing, that all demanded preconditions will be met.

By Elad Benari

 

The Palestinian Authority (PA) agreed to resume peace talks with Israel without preconditions? Not according to chief negotiator Saeb Erekat.

Erekat revealed, in an interview with the Nazareth-based Arabic language A-Shams radio station on Tuesday, that the PA would not have returned to the negotiating table with Israel had it not received a letter of assurances from the United States, guaranteeing its main negotiating preconditions.

Erekat said in the interview that the U.S. Continue Reading »

Category: Israel News | Tags: , ,
| August 20, 2013
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Israel tells the US: Stopping aid to Egyptian army could end peace talks

 

Israeli Official: Egyptian support of great importance in keeping Palestinians at peace talks and influencing Hamas in Gaza.

By JPOST.COM STAFF
 

 

Israel has urged the US to back the Egyptian military, saying losing Egypt to Islamists could pose a risk the Israeli-Palestinian peace talks, the Wall Street Journal reported on Monday.
Egyptian troops en route to Sinai

Egyptian troops en route to Sinai – Photo: REUTERS

According to an Israeli official quoted by the paper, Egypt and Saudi Arabia have traditionally played an important role in providing the Palestinians the support to stay in the negotiations and to make concessions, and without them there is a chance the talks will fail.

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Category: Mid-East News | Tags: , , ,
| August 19, 2013
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United States paying Abbas $148M to stay at Peace Table

Continuing the “peace talks” with Israel is paying big-time for the Palestinian Authority. They’ve succeeded in receiving huge ‘pay-offs’ for each attendance.

By Gil Ronen

 

Negotiations with Israel are paying off already for the Palestinian Authority (PA).

The United States’ consul general in Jerusalem, Michael Ratney, signed an agreement Sunday with PA caretaker prime minister Rami Hamdallah, according to which the U.S. will pay the PA $148 million.

PA finance minister Shukri Bishara witnessed the ceremony along with the director of the United States Agency for International Development, David Harden, reported the Bethlehem-based Maan news agency.

“Hamdallah applauded the US government for supporting the Palestinian people financially and noted that the latest grant would help Palestinian institutions continue to provide services to citizens,” said Maan, which is seen as a semi-independent news agency. Continue Reading »

Category: Israel News | Tags: ,
| August 18, 2013
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U.S. to Israel: Free murdering terrorists, but not killers of Americans

After capitulating to unknown pressure on PM Netanyahu to take steps that would brings Arabs to peace-table, the U.S. State Department was very concerned and opposed of Israel releasing a terrorist who murdered former U.S. Marine in Israel.

By Maayana Miskin

 

Israel’s decision to release terrorist prisoners as a “gesture” to the Palestinian Authority led some Israeli MKs to criticize the United States for allegedly pushing the release. MK Ayelet Shaked (Bayit Yehudi) even wrote a strongly critical letter to Secretary of State John Kerry in which she accused him of “forcing Israel to capitulate to terrorism.”

Abbas welcomes freed terrorists – Reuters

Arutz Sheva posted an article by David Bedein on Monday, August 12 – before the prisoner release – that exposed the fact that terror victim Frederick Rosenfeld, whose murderer was to be released, was an American citizen, and told the tragic story. Continue Reading »

Category: Israel News | Tags: , , ,
| August 17, 2013
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PA officials accuse Kerry of ‘deception & misinformation’ in peace talks with Israel

Palestinian representatives say Kerry gave Abbas assurances on Israeli settlement freeze.

By KHALED ABU TOAMEH

 

 

Palestinian officials in Ramallah have accused the US Administration of deceiving and misinforming the Palestinian Authority with regards to the peace talks with Israel.

US Secretary of State John Kerry (R) shakes hands with Saeb Erekat, April 2013.

US Secretary of State John Kerry (R) shakes hands with Saeb Erekat, April 2013. – Photo: REUTERS

The officials told the London-based Al-Hayat newspaper that they were concerned about the US Administration’s role in the peace talks with Israel, especially its position on plans to build new homes in settlements and east Jerusalem neighborhoods.

The officials met with PA President Mahmoud Abbas last Thursday and heard from him about the peace talks with Israel.

Continue Reading »
Category: Jewish News | Tags: , , ,
| August 16, 2013
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WATCH: Peace Negotiations must be based on legal rights, not political agendas

 

Regardless of the visiting UN Director-General and his anti-Israel bias, the U.S. sponsored peace talks must be based on the fact that Israel has int’l legitimacy, & is prepared to compromise on its legal rights.

By Ryan Jones

 

 

As Israel and the Palestinian Arabs once again return to land-for-peace negotiations, it is vital that these talks be based on legitimate historical fact and international law for there to be any hope of success.

WATCH: Peace talks must be based on fact, not fiction

Peace talks must be based on fact, not fiction

For decades, Israel’s antagonists have argued that the very existence of the Jewish state is illegitimate, and that Israel has no actual right to any of the land, neither historically nor legally. Continue Reading »

Category: Mid-East News | Tags:
| August 15, 2013
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1st Israel-PA Meeting in Jerusalem Ends After 5 Hours

First meeting in this round of Kerry’s peace initiative described as “long and serious”. Israeli newspapers & television reported the meeting was held at an undisclosed location in Jerusalem.

By Elad Benari

 

Israeli and Palestinian Authority negotiators met for around five hours on Wednesday evening.

US State Dept. Briefing on Israel-PA Talks

Israeli media reported that the meeting began shortly before 7:00 p.m. and ended just before midnight.

According to the reports, the talks were “long and serious” and the parties agreed to meet again within days.

Israeli negotiator Tzipi Livni’s office said earlier that there would be no statements or pictures from the meeting, reported AFP. Continue Reading »

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