Palestinian source: U.S. pressuring Abbas to continue talks even if settlements expand

You don't stop negotiations because you are not getting everything perfectly and the other side is acting like they are unfriendly. You continue negotiations because they might create conditions where neither side has a need to kill the other.

To what THE LANDLORD should give him although the should be greatful he has a roof over his head.What audacity,what NERVE! Whether you are inconveniest or not too bad,...Ariel is Jewish like the rest IT ALL BELONGS TO ISRAEL,NOT TO ANY THIEVES/USURPERS.Get it into your thick noodle Abbas of two names,you are doing jolly well I hear in OUR JUDEA/SAMARIA..but only on a temporary basis.Not to be ensconced permanately EITHER .. REMEMBER AND NEVER FORGET,...THE BLOODY CHEEK

Peace negotiations are about returning the land to Pals, not about Israeli expansion. By applying pressure in the wrong direction the US is killing peace. Allowing Israel to expand further means that the last pieces of Pal land are gradually taken over. A two-state solution will for ever be impossible. There will be more violence since Pals can never accept that situation. Why is the US killing the last chances ?

but it can impose this conflict never gets resolved. That is what has been happening as America shields Israel from the consequences of her folly. America has imposed a perpetual conflict by continuing to only pressure the weakest link - the victims of Israeli crimes. This is a very clever line " we can't impose a solution on the parties" but at the same time America alone has imposed a hellish reality on the Palestinians while sanctimoniously claiming it has benevolent motives and clean hands . Without American imposition and interference this conflict would have been solved decades ago. This is a sham, America is once again strong arming the Palestinians into accepting terms only good for it's client-state. If there should be any pressure applied, it should be directed at the regime that has the most UN resolution violations on record. Expanding settlements is illegal under international law. What gall for the administration - where it's own

Abbas should resign , disolve the "Authority" and demand political rights from Israel for the Palestinians. He should demand that Israel take responsibility for the needs of the occupied . Israel must make up its mind . The land should be for all the people that belong to it and the state should be for all of its citizens. If not peace will never happen....Bibi can demand security but it will not be achievable....

who asked you to speak for me? you think you gain points with Palestinians by speaking FOR THEM??

No reason the land swap, the 1:1 cannot be west Bank for Galilee. That would settle a lot of the water issue, too.

Since the construction moratorium was made 10 months ago in exchange for a solemn promise from the Obama regime that Abbas would enter at least good faith indirect negotiations, and that the Arab world would make major "gestures" in return to Israel, and that NONE of this reciprocation occurred, Israel is clearly entitled to "take back" retroactively its concession - all construction contracted and scheduled during the last 10 months will proceed to completion. New contracting can be placed on hold pending an agreement over the next year - PROVIDED Abbas and the PLO deliver an equivalent concession to Israel. Unilateral gestures have to stop; they have yielded nothing.

After the Gaza-Jericho First agreement (Oslo), Israel was to give Gaza and Jericho over to Palestinian control. Arafat then started an argument: What is meant by "Jericho"? Israel thought it was the city, but Arafat claimed it meant the "District of Jericho" as was used by Jordan, a much larger area. It took months to agree on some compromise, and all this with the understanding that Oslo is a first leg towards a much larger Israeli evacuation in a peace agreement. I hope Abbas does not repeat Arafat's mistakes. Yes, he is legally correct when demanding a complete halt to settlement construction, and even in East Jerusalem, which international law forbids. But better accept some "effective freeze" which would allow only small scale construction, and move on with the larger peace deal. In return for the "freeze" concession, the Palestinians will get some good Israeli concession, such as a larger Area A. The opening declarations are not too comforting, unfortunately.

The Dome was built as a victory monument over the Christians, but Mohammad's army did not have the skills to build it. The design, engineering, and labor were all Byzantine. Christians are no longer a problem, so the building is just a nutty confusing relic with hateful graffiti on its walls. If it were demolished, a lot of the strife concerning Jerusalem would vanish, along with the rock-throwing, etc. If Ronald Reagan were here, he might say, "Mr. Abbas, Tear Down that Dome!".

Sounds like this has got some legs. Fantastic.

He doesn't represent his people He is a puppet He gets paid well to sell Palestinian land

From his belly button no less, and that is all he has to offer.

Why is it up to Abbas to agree to continued settlement building for direct talks to continue? Come on, the onus should fall squarely on Bibi"s shoulders, as they(the Israeli gov) are the ones in total control of this issue. If Bibi is really after a peaceful solution, as he professes he is, he should call a halt to building and not play dumb. Why is it so hard to give back what is not yours to begin with? Utter rubbish!

historically it was never Palestinian so their claim is emotional only, and there for an ego victory. Still we have to look beyond the past and into the future. let the Pals have half, and sign the agreement. that action alone is a major step in the elimination of hamas

Let's try and think out of the box. What's the Highest Interest for both parts if not the fact that consultations last - that is to say the Process itself does not freeze? On the one hand the Right forces in Israel won't allow to prorogue the moratorium or to issue a new freeze. On the other hand the PA Authority won't allow to Peace Process to advance if the freeze of Settlements is not renewed. However there is a contradiction in this view as the PA source you mention has already decided the definition of what the Palestinian State will be : within the borders of 1967 and admitting Jerusalem as its Capital. This is not a good way to start negotiations if you already have decided their final results, isn't? In the same contradictory way it is not possible to start to negotiate with your Partner if you decided already you will not change your plan not to renew the moratorium on Settlements. The situation appears to be blocked once more, and still on the same dead end point. What is different this time? The possibility of a third party namely a NATO interposition force to temper violence attempts from both parts. This is the first point : by accepting the presence of a third force both parts would be assured to see the Peace Process as a continuity. Meanwhile it seems obvious the PM Benjamin Netanyahu will have to work with all Good Will Political Forces in Israel to agree wisely on a prorogation or at least a strong management of the Settlement issue in order to preserve the chances to the Peace Process to last and advance forward -- as much as the Palestinian Authority will have to work to refrain the impulse to quit the Negotiation Table before the term or before any significant progress were made. Israel is able to assemble and activate a Political Force so that the principle of a long lasting freeze of Settlements can be written into the Register of the Laws -- isn't the Knesset's main force always to engage Wisdom and Sage Views in favour of the Highest Interests of the Israeli People? The Palestinian Authority lead by Mr. Mahmoud Abbas is able to find the force to stay at the Negotiation Table the time for Israel to set the question of the Settlements right in order to serve the Peace Process -- isn't its patience now renewed by the International enlightenment of the Peace Process Good enough to support the question to endure the time of its solutions to be found? The Highest Interests of both parts depend on a tight Negotiation about land and Land that is to say concerning technical and Substantial determination of the Sincere Brotherhood and Calm Neighborhood to come between the Two People of the Land of Election. To solve the paradox mentioned at the beginning We should consider the Ending Point of the Negotiation Process : Peace Process Succeeded! Then We have to Reconstruct the Process recessively from this End Towards its Beginning. This is why it is mandatory for both parts to accept to redefine parts of their Political Endorsement in order to make Progress We need to see the Region Prosper Quietly and the world be embellished by a True Success of Humankind.

All the pressure is on Abbas to make concesssions while Netanyahu continues his rants. Should the Palestinians collaborate in the destruction of a viable Paletine, or let Israel-Palestine become a single state deman ding equal rights and protections?

what will be left of jerusalem or the west bank if the PA agrees to all this nonesense... ? nothing

Accept the deal that will be put forward which is more then fair. Or more on as this is the last offer that will be placed on the table. The world has grown tired of Arab demands. Peace out...

If the Israeli side finds it impossible to live with extending the building moratorium, and the Palestinians find it equally impossible to continue talks without extending the moratorium; There is a way out of this, but the two have to agree on it. Decide now and reach an agreement on final status borders, as first order of business. You will be surprised how other pieces would fall in place,and Israel will be free to resume construction anywhere in the areas that will be under its jurisdiction. Obviously the situation as it is: No agreement on borders, no agreement on extending moratorium, yet continuation of direct talks; is a recipe for failure and an end to Abbas regime.

As simple as that. This issue is the red line

And so must Netanyahu. They BOTH must understand that every minute they wast means lives and land lost.

The Palestinians are trying to calculate the remaining surface area of their portion of a shared pizza while the Israelis keep taking bites out of it.

None of the land belongs to him. All of Israel is just that. Gaza makes the point.

I guess we will see how his Chicago bully style politics goes internationally.

The freeze on settlement building was self imposed. To the PA, it meant hope for future state is still possible. Israel's insistence now on resumption of building activity is tantamount to removing the last realistic hope, of establishing a viable state for Palestinians. I think, everyone understands that it would be impossible to continue discussions of a gradually disappearing reality. PM Natanyahu can rescue the peace process, by declaring a temporary freeze pending final status agreement within a year. It is all in his hands. Pressuring Abbas to continue talks just for sake of talks, while Israel continues the gradual chomping of the remaining piece of land; would be making a mockery of Abbas and the peace process, in the eyes of all Palestinians , not only the extreme factions. We must remember that extreme factions on both sides want the process to fail, and there is no other more potent factor to guarantee failure than the resumption of building activity.

Palestinians are not happy with Abbas and as a result any agreement is doomed to failure. We should not lie on ourselves. Most Palestinians don’t see Abbas as a legitimate leader. As such, any agreement with him is useless. We should see good partners who are able to sign a historical agreement even if this partner required a lot of sacrifice and even if it Hamas. Otherwise we are negotiating in vain.

Israel should strike the smuggling tunnels and weapons work shops in Gaza as a response to the killings in the West Bank.

Hamas has the solution Hamas is the powerful force in Gaza and West Bank and other regions. The negotiation with Abbas is a waste of time. We need to understand what Hamas want before it is too late. We Should give Hamas the West Bank soon. Otherwise, tomorrow Hamas will take it by force and start targeting other Lid and Tel Aviv . Hamas possess the solution

What is built can be bulldozed. Israel has a history of doing that. Abbas should focus on Borders and Sovereignty and getting no restrictions on security forces.

Israel can not have the cake and eat it. .As it is Palestine can not exist as a state with settlements in west bank with with over 500,000settlers the wall and check points . UN resolution 242 has to be implemented in total and Netanyahu has Pre conditions reducing Palestine to worse than a Bantu state. Hamas is marginalized! failure 100%

Abbas says he can not agree to a continuation of construction during direct talks. Ok step down and get some one else with balls .

One look at a map will show you that Israel's own mantra about "defensible borders" makes Ariel a dead-duck i.e. you can't loop the border around Ariel and still claim that such a border loop can be defended. "other settlement blocs - Gush Etzion, Maaleh Adumim and the Jewish neighborhoods around Jerusalem - will remain in Israeli hands in a future agreement" Settlements that sit off the two "shoulders" of Jerusalem are arguable. Those that exist merely to cut off Jerusalem from the West Bank are not; the Pals simply can not accept an arrangement that leaves their capital choked off by Israeli "settlements". Those will have to go, and if the Americans press Abbas to concede on those then he should get up and walk out.

The whole matter has been well cooked during the last year between USA, Israeli and PA leaders. The paletinian people must decide: Either to remain permanently the slaves of zionists or to live in dignity and honour in their home land. I'm sure they will choose the second alternative.

Wow, so for some reason, he puts pressure on the weaker party instead of the stronger one. I thought he of all people would understand the plight of the Palestinians on this issue.

big headlines this....the settlements expand, maybe try turning it around to...the terror continues.

.... The activity in the large settlements means nothig for him, Those settlements remain anyway in Israeli hands, forever, It's better for him to get to the real problems, and not behave unnecessarily like a stubborn child. Ask what he gets in return for the lands used for all those Ariels.

Just where the hell is the logic behind pressuring Abbas to continue with talks while Israel steals more land? What the heck is the purpose of working towards a two state solution when there is not going to be enough land for the Palestinians to piss on? This is sheer lunacy. Abbas needs to save whatever little pride he has left and pull out of these talks.

Never Mind the Pressure from US failing president who is groping for ONE thing by forcing Israelis and arabs to sit down _BY FORCE_ AND BY HOOK AND BY CROOK DEMAND PIECES OF ISRAEL TO ARABS FOR THE SAKE OF HIS SKIN AS HE CANT SAVE IT WITH HIS FAILED DOMESTIC POLICIES. HE IS A FAILURE AND ALL OF THE PARTICIPANTS SHOULD NOT BE BULLIED INTO A HASTY DECISION ONE WILL REGRET FOREVER

Poland more independent country t( Congress Kongdom, autonimy ) than Jews want to give Poland more freedom that Israel wants to give Palestinians. ( Congress Kongdom, autonomy and almost no settlers - but strange the settlers were also Jews there )Yet they have not agreed and thought for 120 years, Freedom is not for free or is not given by negotioations. Even if the fight is long and bloody and sometimes there is no hope it is the OLNLY WAY

BHO and our Barak will try to topple Netanyahu.

Why the US always put pressure on Abbas? He agreed to the talks without any preconditions due to US pressure. Now they want talk even if Israel build settlements and kill Palestinians at their will. What a hypocrites? Israel openly defies its obligation and never respected the previous agreements with Palestinians. But still the US won't put any pressure on Israel. Can any mediation be so unjust like this?

..the negogiator should not be a partial one (US). This is just to boost Obama. FREE PALESTINE!

Abu Mazen must find an exit strategy and quick. Laying down and abandoning even the minimum of Palestinian demands of cessation of illegal settlement building will be viewed as outright treason and no palestinian will acknowledge his authority. Mr Obama can trump the deck all he wants by pinning abbas into submission, inviting only the so-called 'moderates' to the table, in the end no deal will be signed, let alone honored by the palestinians.

Abbas is just always slanted and one sided... Notice how even in the speeches that Netanyahu gives, he references the economic, sociologic and nationalistic benefits for Palestinians when peace is reached. Notice how Abbas NEVER utters a single word about his thoughts on Israelis as a whole... He wants building freezes, 1967 borders and everything under the sun all while he can't himself FREEZE his OWN PEOPLE from shooting Israelis in cars or let alone even ACKNOWLEDGE where Jews came from and WHY a Jewish state has a RIGHT to exist, AT ALL... His people don't even WANT just the west bank / gaza, they want ALL of Israel, and he wants a "freeze"??? What the hell can HE freeze on HIS side???

If Obama supports every Israeli red line and excuse while tearing down and throwing away the same from the Palestinians', then this is just another waste of time. Does the U.S. government view settlements as illegal or not?

Effort to cover the coming attack on iran,lebanon and syria but it will fizzle right away.

The civil rights movement in the USA gave us integration, not segregated cities. Hence what is wrong with settlements that would have Palistinians living side by side with Israellis and all acting for the common good of their communities?

They are not refugees from the West Bank or Gaza so I guess they should go back to their original lands in Israel once this has been concluded. All 4 million of them.

to be convinced that Israel intends to withdraw from the majority of West Bank settlements, wouldn't it be a good idea for the Israeli Government to announce the acceptance of the 1967 borders with retainment of the selected blocs this month and thus the continuation of direct talks? With regards to the sovereignty of the Temple Mount, it's very difficult to ever see Israel and the Jewish people relinquish their sovereignty over this Holy site which was of Jewish origin and sacred significance of who we are and where we come from. The only suggested proposal which I've made in the past is Jerusalem's Temple Mount be applied as a duplex sort of sovereignty within the final agreement written status - but that's far from ever being accepted by most people I realize.

Isn't this what Olmert and Barak before him offered Abbas? It wasn't acceptable then but it is now? Like Hamas is going to go for this.

It's already been hinted at that the kind of settlement the Israeli goverment might propose would retain the settlements. So the more settlements are built while the negociations drag on the less land will be left over for the Palestinians. And on top of that they are supposed absorb all the returning refugees. I've said it before, and I'll say it again: No Israeli government, including this one made a reasonable peace offer.

Well, after they bailed out all Americas riches: banks and insurance companies, USA tax-payers probably got used to it. April 15 is only due in six months...If I would be a USA citizen, I'd tell my president to start dealing with unemployment, rather than trying to solve all the world's problems.

Reasonable in every respect as any sane person would agree.

settlements are not the obstacle to peace. They never have been. The true obstacle to peace remains what it has always been: the Palestinian refusal to accept a permanent and sovereign Jewish presence in the land of Israel. Palestinian leaders continue to harbor fantasies of annihilation, which is why they have been loath to accept even the most generous of Israeli offers over the years. This is one reason why settlements are so important: they disabuse the Palestinians of their deeply-held notion that Israel is a passing or temporary phenomenon. Every red-bricked Israeli roof that is erected on the outskirts of Ramallah, every Hebrew hothouse that goes up south of Hebron, is a tangible reminder to Mr. Abbas and his colleagues that the Jewish people are here to stay. If each time they look out their windows, the Palestinian leadership is faced with a steadily–growing Jewish horizon, they will be forced to accept this basic and fundamental truth. Then, and only then, will peace possibly have a chance of breaking out. So it is time for the Jewish state to rev up the bulldozers and start building again throughout Judea and Samaria. Both because it is good for Israel and, ironically enough, also for peace.

Neither leader can give up enough on their side to satisfy the other side without committing political suicide. Talks will fail, settlements will grow, native Arabs will demand the Vote in Palestine Israel, and they will get it, eventually.

Israel must stop the construction in the west bank and continue with the peace talks........... Israel must give the palestinians Gaza and West bank (with some modifications, like arab areas to a Palestinian state and jewish areas to Israel) and, of course, Israel must retain Jersusalem (no division of Jerusalem, ¿don't remember what jordanians made? no more jewish expulsion from jerusalem, no more destroyed sinagogues and no desecrated tombstones)............ about the refugees, that is a palestinian problem. israel can't accept any "refugee". and if they want some compensation, the arabs countries must recognize the same rights for the expelled jewish population (many will say that is inhuman not to accept any refugee, but population exchange was also made between greece and turkey, India and pakistan, etc. and now, at least in greece and turkey, there are no ethnic problems)................. all is about consesions, Israel must give, palestinians must give....................... and finally, the arabs of palestine must RECOGNIZE israel as the JEWISH NATION, THE STATE FOR THE JEWS (there are many nation-states in the world and that does not mean that those countries are not democratic, even if they have big minorities like estonia, wich is the nation state for the estonians etc. etc.)

Abbas will accept anything. THat is not a problem. However, Abbas does not represent the Palestinian people. The real problem is to reach a deal with the Palestinian people. A deal with the Palestinian people cannot be reached unless it is fair and just. What does it mean fair and just? Well! The international law is clear.

Israel must stop the construction in the west bank and continue with the peace talks........... Israel must give the palestinians Gaza and West bank (with some modifications, like arab areas to a Palestinian state and jewish areas to Israel) and, of course, Israel must retain Jersusalem (no division of Jerusalem, ¿don't remember what jordanians made? no more jewish expulsion from jerusalem, no more destroyed sinagogues and no desecrated tombstones)............ about the refugees, that is a palestinian problem. israel can't accept any "refugee". and if they want some compensation, the arabs countries must recognize the same rights for the expelled jewish population (many will say that is inhuman not to accept any refugee, but population exchange was also made between greece and turkey, India and pakistan, etc. and now, at least in greece and turkey, there are no ethnic problems)................. all is about consesions, Israel must give, palestinians must give....................... and finally, the arabs of palestine must RECOGNIZE israel as the JEWISH NATION, THE STATE FOR THE JEWS (there are many nation-states in the world and that does not mean that those countries are not democratic, even if they have big minorities like estonia, wich is the nation state for the estonians etc. etc.)............... and finally i want to say mucho more but my english is very limited....... shalom!

Well there goes the negotiations those Palestinians being unreasonable

Put down the crack pipe, please.

Netanyahu cautioned that security would come first for him, while Abbas stipulated that if the settlement freeze is not extended he would back out of the talks. Meanwhile the Quartet proclaimed that talks could be wrapped within a year. For Abbas, the settlement freeze is one of many excuses, and for Netanyahu security is one of many concerns. This scenario had played out over and over again, and we all know how it ends. Few have stopped to ask why, and whilst there are many theoretical answers, what is most baffling, is how can the leaders of the free world dive back into the same routine without understanding the crux of past failures? One would think that only by analyzing the failure of earlier attempts at reaching an agreement can the powers that be truly understand what is necessary to proceed for the future. An enquiry, conducted by a third independent party, would have to be brutal, intricate, far reaching and most of all intellectually honest. It seems that in the absence of such a fact finding commission, this whole exercise is a futile waste of time. If such an investigation were to be launched, I would be willing to wager that the results would be as follows: In rather straightforward terms, the Palestinian Arabs would like to see the complete dissolution of the State of Israel. It is stated in one way or another in every single Palestinian constitutional mandate and is constantly reinforced by statements coming from high ranking PA officials. Of course the education of Palestinian Arab children in the West Bank and Gaza strip is also a strong indication of what Palestinian Arab aspirations for the future entail, and they are certainly not being taught about reconciliation in any form. Israel on the other hand is not prepared to concede to this, and will do everything in its power to guarantee the safety and security of her citizens. The result: Stalemate The cycle has now been referred to as ‘The false religion of peace,’ as administration after administration unquestionably commit to its implementation without challenging the fundamental premises and assumptions. Is it possible that all of the world’s greatest political powers, the UN, the EU, Russia and the US have no plan B for peace in the Middle East? Is there no alternate solution? How many times must they fail at the same endeavors before considering that there may be some fundamental inadequacies with their boiler room policies? The concerned Israeli and Palestinian Arab public are becoming more and more disillusioned and faith in the talks is minimal. People want answers, and not more of the same.

it'd be funny if it weren't so sad