JERUSALEM, Dec. 24 (Xinhua) -- A second round of peace talks between the Israeli and Palestinian negotiation teams concluded on Monday without yielding results or progress, local media reported.
The two-hour meeting held in Jerusalem ended in disagreement with the Palestinians calling Israeli settlement building illegal, a top Palestinian negotiator said.
Palestinian top negotiator Saeb Erekat. A second round of peace talks between the Israeli and Palestinian negotiation teams concluded on Monday without yielding results or progress. (Xinhua/Reuters Photo) Photo Gallery>>>
Palestinians insisted that Israel stop settlement expansion, while Israelis demand that the Palestinians implement reforms in security mechanisms.
"This is illegal because the 'road map' (peace plan) stipulates that you should stop all settlement activity, including natural growth," the Palestinian top negotiator Saeb Erekat was quoted by Ha'aretz as saying after the session.
The Israeli and Palestinian negotiation teams met for the second time since the international peace conference held last month in Annapolis, Maryland.
Israeli Prime Minister Ehud Olmert and Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas are scheduled to meet later in the week for the first time since the Annapolis peace conference. The two leaders will try to resolve the main problematic issues obstructing the talks at this point.
President George W. Bush stands on stage with Israel's Prime Minister Ehud Olmert and Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas at the Israel-Palestinian Peace Conference at the U.S. Naval Academy in Annapolis, Nov. 27, 2007. (Xinhua/Reuters Photo) Photo Gallery>>>
Israel has expanded plans to build new homes in a disputed East Jerusalem neighborhood as well as in a nearby settlement, according to the Housing Ministry's proposed budget for 2008.
Earlier this month, Israel angered the Palestinians and drew criticism from the United States when it announced plans to build 307 new apartments in the East Jerusalem neighborhood of Har Homa.
MOSCOW, Dec. 24 (Xinhua) -- Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov said on Monday his nation is ready to hold a Mideast peace conference if all concerned sides are interested in the matter.
"We will be ready whether other gamers are prepared for it and whether this meeting makes it possible to push us towards moving forward," Itar-Tass quoted the top diplomat as saying. Full story
JERUSALEM, Dec. 12 (Xinhua) -- Negotiators from Israel and the Palestinian National Authority (PNA) ended their first meeting of peace negotiations on Wednesday with little progress but an agreement about a next meeting.
Aryeh Mekel, spokesman for the Israeli Foreign Ministry, said that during the meeting, the Palestinian side raised the issues of Israel's recent plan of expanding an East Jerusalem settlement and Israeli army's Tuesday military operation in Gaza, while the Israeli side raised its security concern following the Qassam rocket barrage against southern Israeli communities on Wednesday morning. Full story
JERUSALEM, Dec. 12 (Xinhua) -- Negotiation teams from Israel and the Palestinian National Authority on Wednesday noon formally kicked off the first round of peace talks, which was aimed to reach a permanent deal by the end of 2008.
The meeting was kept low profile, as the originally scheduled photo opportunity for the media was canceled due to a Palestinian protest against the latest Israeli military offensive in the Gaza Strip. Full story
JERUSALEM, Dec. 11 (Xinhua) -- Israel Defense Forces (IDF) has concluded its day-long military offensive in Gaza Strip, an IDF spokesperson said on Tuesday evening.
During the large-scale incursion by the IDF, dozens of Israeli tanks and armored vehicles operated in both northern and southern Gaza, as part of a routine operation against Palestinian militants. Full story
JERUSALEM, Dec. 11 (Xinhua) -- Negotiators from Israel and the Palestinian National Authority (PNA), who will meet in Jerusalem on Wednesday, will focus on processes and procedures and building framework for talks, rather than content, local daily the Jerusalem Post reported on Tuesday.
ANNAPOLIS, United States, Nov. 28 (Xinhua) -- The Annapolis conference on the Middle East, following months of mediation by the Bush administration, has rekindled hope for the revival of the long-dormant Middle East peace process.
U.S. President George W. Bush announced at the start of the one-day meeting Tuesday that Palestinian and Israeli leaders had agreed on the framework for future negotiations. Full story
