Israeli President Shimon Peres reportedly met with Chief Negotiator for the PLO Saeb Erekat last week in what Israeli press called an “effort to ease the way toward a tripartite meeting at the UN.”
In early September Palestinian Minister of the National Economy Basim Khoury met with Israeli Minister of Regional Development Silvan Shalom around initiatives under “economic peace,” and was harshly criticized by Hamas and parties in the West Bank for sitting with an Israeli leader while settlement construction continues. Only a week after the meeting Khoury announced he would halt planned follow up talks with the MK.
According to a report in the Israeli English daily Haaretz, Peres has been working behind the scenes with members of the Palestinian Authority and the United States “to get the peace negotiations back on track.” The paper quoted Peres as telling Erekat during the two hour meeting, "This opportunity must not be allowed to pass…I am asking that you tell Abu Mazen [Abbas] this. He needs to attend the meeting at the UN."
Palestinians, however, remain resolute over their demand that settlement construction in the West Bank, including East Jerusalem, be completely stopped before negotiators sit at a table with Israel.
On 9 September, however, Israel announced developers were being sought for 486 new apartments in the Pisgat Zeev neighborhood of East Jerusalem, and on 7 September Netanyahu announced the construction of 455 settlement homes in the West Bank.
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