Abbas:No peace talks without complete freeze on Israeli settlement construction

ABU DHABI, November 01, SPA -- President of the Palestinian National Authority
Mahmud Abbas on Saturday said the resumption of peace talks with Israel is not
possible before a complete freeze on Israeli settlement construction is put in
place.


In statements following his meeting with US secretary of state Hillary Clinton in Abu
Dhabi, Abbas said the Israeli government should honor its obligations, in particular
those related to a total halt on the settlements, an issue he said is blocking all
prospects
for Relaunching the peace process that has been stalled for almost a year.


"The problem is that the Israeli government refuses to stop building settlements"
in the West Bank and East Al-Quds.

Abbas said Arabs, Muslims and the whole world is responsible for the issue of
Al-Quds"which is in real danger."


"Without Al-Quds (Jerusalem), there will be no point in peace," Abbas warned,
according to a report of the UAE news agency "WAM"


"We came up with nothing new", Abbas stressed adding that no breakthrough was made
at the meeting with Mrs. Clinton.


US Middle East envoy George Mitchell was also present at the meeting.


For his part, chief Palestinian negotiator Saeb Erakat said without a complete
freeze of settlement activities means no talks could be relaunched.


Israel, Erakat said, refuses to halt the ongoing construction of some 3,000 houses
in the West Bank and in annexed east Jerusalem.


Admitting that the meeting was "difficult", Erakat noted that "the Americans
conveyed to us the Israeli position ... and the gap between us was very deep and is
widening even more."

Erakat said "it is not about pressures (on the Palestinian delegation today), rather
it is the system of interests... We honored our obligations )towards the peace
process)and the Israelis has to do theirs."

"The U.S administration which has 230000 troops in the region has to put and end to
the quagmire of the Israeli occupation and would be completely wrong if it thinks it
could solve problems through wars," Erakat added.

WAM- MMYS
WAM/TF

WAM 1826 2009/10/31
--SPA 14:20 LOCAL TIME 11:20 GMT NNNN