Last update - 01:41 18/03/2008
Israel, PA renew core issue talks
By Barak Ravid
Israel and the Palestinian Authority last night officially renewed negotiations on the core issues of a final-settlement agreement following more than two weeks in which the talks were suspended due to the fighting in the Gaza Strip. During this time, although the heads of the negotiating teams - Foreign Minister Tzipi Livni and Ahmed Qureia - did not meet, low-key meetings were held between the heads of the working groups on civilian matters.
Yesterday's meeting was carried out under protest on the part of the Palestinians, who complained about Israeli construction in Givat Ze'ev and East Jerusalem. The Palestinians demanded that the level of the meeting be downgraded and that it be held only between Livni and Qureia, without the extended working groups.
Speaking at a press conference with visiting German Chancellor Angela Merckel yesterday, Prime Minister Ehud Olmert said that "we have not stopped, we are not stopping and we will not stop the negotiations, until we reach the essential results that we believe in."
Olmert said Israel "has no intention of evading or denying its obligations but our primary obligation, a prerequisite condition for progress, is an end to terrorism. It is impossible to compare it to any of the other commitments on the road map," he said.
Regarding construction in Jerusalem, Olmert said that "everyone knows that there is no chance that Israel will give up Har Homa, which is part of Jerusalem. The Palestinians know this, and therefore there is no significance to one more or less buildings. Everything else is open to negotiation."