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Last update - 08:16 28/10/2009
U.S. leaning toward indirect Mideast peace talks
By Barak Ravid, Haaretz Correspondent
Tags: Hillary Clinton, Barack Obama 

U.S. Secretary of State Hillary Clinton will arrive in Israel on Saturday night for her first official visit since Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu's government was sworn in.

Clinton's visit underscores the goal of reaching a compromise that could see the resumption of peace talks between Israel and the Palestinians.

In light of the ever-wide gaps between the Israeli and Palestinian sides, voices are growing within the Obama administration to shift strategy and suffice with indirect - rather than direct - negotiations.
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The secretary of state is now taking a more active role in the diplomatic process in the Middle East, which has thus far been overseen by special envoy George Mitchell.

Mitchell is due to arrive in Israel on Thursday for preparatory discussions prior to Clinton's trip.

Clinton is expected to meet Netanyahu, Defense Minister Ehud Barak and President Shimon Peres on Sunday. Before her arrival in Israel, Clinton will take part in a meeting of Arab foreign ministers in Morocco.

Netanyahu, meanwhile, will travel to the United States to address the United Jewish Communities General Assembly in Washington, which will take place from November 8 to November 10.

The prime minister's bureau said Netanyahu expects to meet with U.S. President Barack Obama during his stay in the capital.

Last week, Mitchell said it was premature to declare his efforts to revive Israeli-Palestinian peace talks as a failure. In a report submitted to Obama last week, Clinton said that little progress was made in advancing the peace process.

Clinton has said that Obama administration efforts should center on bolstering Abbas' position. Her comments were in a report to Obama last week on attempts to renew negotiations between Israel and the Palestinians.

Meanwhile, Channel 10 News reported Tuesday night that Abbas has told the White House that he is considering stepping down because of the lack of progress in the peace process.

A senior political source who was privy to the State Department report noted that in it Clinton had stressed the significant setback to Abbas in Palestinian public opinion because of the initial decision not to press ahead with bringing the Goldstone report on the Gaza Strip to the Human Rights Council of the United Nations.

Days before the report was delivered to Obama, Palestinian chief negotiator Saeb Erekat went to Washington, where he warned of the repercussions of the difficult domestic situation faced by Abbas and the overall desperation in the Ramallah headquarters of the Palestinian Authority government over the stalled peace process.

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      1.   Bibi is busy- let FM Lieberman meet Mitchell 21:35  |  Gershon 27/10/09
      2.   Hillary Clinton 21:45  |  Harold 27/10/09
      3.   US? Impossible 23:38  |  blash 27/10/09
      4.   `Oh Bibi, I love it when you humiliate me!" 00:01  |  Mark Lincoln 28/10/09
      5.   Obama lost control (... too bad for Netanyahu) 00:09  |  Siam Kerry 28/10/09
      6.   OK, let`s talk indirectly 00:37  |  WHG 28/10/09
      7.   NO TALKS AT ALL!!! 00:46  |  MOE 28/10/09
      8.   Time to talk to Hamas or continue the Israel Project 01:37  |  Marc Leb 28/10/09
      9.   More Insanity 02:20  |  MIKE 28/10/09
      10.   The Peace Scare of 2009 is OVER! 02:32  |  Mark Lincoln 28/10/09
      11.   Borders first issue then building on bothsides needed 03:20  |  Bloodyscot 28/10/09
      12.   Reverse Islamist incitement against Jews 06:00  |  Michael Hessler 28/10/09
      13.   tragedy looming 07:03  |  shakshooka 28/10/09
      14.   Micheal Hessler 08:22  |  jake 1948 28/10/09
      15.   Americans Are Wasting Their Time 08:56  |  MB 28/10/09
      16.   Remember C.Rice? 12:46  |  Justine Effort 28/10/09
      17.   Direct talks was such a major success, time for indirect talks 17:41  |  Darth Zaider (Ed) 28/10/09
      18.   MB re: imposing a settlement 17:46  |  Darth Zaider (Ed) 28/10/09
      19.   indirect 18:12  |  oz 28/10/09
      20.   leb 18:23  |  Yaron 28/10/09
      21.   Test of Alliance 20:19  |  Jay 28/10/09
      22.   Clinton is wasting her time. No peace intended... 22:04  |  Maureen Ann 28/10/09
      23.   Bad move that will fail 23:05  |  Jania 28/10/09
      24.   The problem is, oz #19, that all these `third-parties` 23:14  |  Esther 28/10/09
      25.   # 22 00:09  |  Yaron 29/10/09
      26.   wasting time 05:12  |  idiot 29/10/09
      27.   Life, War and Politics 07:22  |  A nobody 29/10/09
      28.   Peace Scare of 2009- not over 20:01  |  Stephen 29/10/09
      29.   #28 Stephan I`m with your kind of thinking. 05:48  |  Lou Medel 30/10/09
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