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Palestine President Sets Rider For Direct Talks With Israel

05 August 2010 23:32 (UTC +04:00)

Baku â€“ APA. Palestine President Mahmoud Abbas has indicated willingness for holding direct talks with Israel, subject to certain conditions being met by the Jewish state, reports said on Thursday, APA reports â€œRTT Newsâ€.
It was after a meeting with Saudi Arabia’s King Abdullah in the Red Sea port city of Jeddah late on Wednesday that the Palestinian side decided on the talks.
According to Abbas, he was ready for talks with Israel provided that Tel Aviv agreed to key demands including a total halt to construction of Jewish settlements on occupied West Bank.
The Palestinian leader said he would negotiate directly with Israel if the ultimate aim was to establish an independent Palestinian state on territories occupied by Israel following the 1967 Arab-Israeli war.
As for the political divide between his Fatah party and Hamas which rules the Gaza Strip, Abbas admitted that differences continued to exist between the two sides. However, he felt that the fault lines should not undermine peace talks with Israel.
"The peace process has no relation to internal divisions, as it is not linked to disputes between groups but to Palestinian independence. If we reach an agreement with the Israelis, I will present it to the public in a referendum," Abbas said.
Abbas and the Saudi monarch reportedly discussed developments in the proximity talks--U.S. brokered indirect talks-- between Israel and the Palestinians, as well as efforts to revive the Mid East peace process.
Back in 2007, Saudi Arabia had unsuccessfully tried to broker peace between Hamas and Fatah but its endeavor did not succeed.