Road to ME peace talks 'blocked', says Abbas
Palestinian President Mahmud Abbas (L) holds talks with his Egyptian counterpart Hosni Mubarak in Cairo yesterday. Abbas met with Mubarak to discuss the latest developments in the Middle East, and is also due to visit Jordan. Photo: AFP
Palestinian president Mahmud Abbas said yesterday that the failure by US envoy George Mitchell to a secure a deal on Jewish settlements means the resumption of peace talks with Israel is on hold.
"The road is now blocked," Abbas told reporters after talks with Egyptian President Hosni Mubarak in Cairo.
Mitchell left Israel on Friday after failing to secure a key deal on Jewish settlements. He had spent the day shuttling between Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and Abbas, after meeting both leaders earlier this week.
Abbas said that the onus was now on Israel to clear the way for peace negotiations, adding that Mitchell will resume talks with the Middle East players after the UN General Assembly next week.
"There is no more work (for Mitchell) with the Western or Palestinian sides because we are complying with all our duties. The focus has to be on the Israeli side," he said.
Mitchell had been trying to broker a compromise on the thorny issue that would have led to a three-way meeting between Netanyahu, Abbas and US President Barack Obama on the sidelines of the General Assembly.
He had been aiming to secure some kind of Israeli moratorium that would be acceptable to the Palestinians and enable the resumption of peace talks that were suspended in late December.
Netanyahu has rebuffed US calls to freeze settlement construction in the West Bank, including annexed east Jerusalem, and Palestinians are sticking to their demand for such a halt before negotiations can resume.
Earlier the United States said envoy George Mitchell ended his Middle East mission on Friday without a breakthrough in his talks with the Israelis and Palestinians.
"Senator Mitchell has returned to the US but there will be more opportunities for discussions in New York next week," State Department spokesman Ian Kelly told reporters.
The quartet on Middle East peace -- which includes the United States, Russia, the European Union and the United Nations -- plan to hold talks on the sidelines of the UN General Assembly in New York next week.
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