(VOVworld) – Ideas proposed by US Secretary of State John Kerry to Palestinian president Mahmud Abbas cannot “serve as the basis for a framework accord” with Israel.
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President Mahmud Abbas (R) meets with US Secretary of State John Kerry for their second round of talks in two days in Paris on February 20, 2014 (Photo: citizen.co.za) |
A Palestinian official on condition of anonymity said that Palestine cannot accept the proposals as they do not take into account the legitimate rights of the Palestinian people. The official said that the US proposals, particularly the recognition of Israel as a Jewish state, are unacceptable while proposals for the future of Israeli-annexed east Jerusalem, which the Palestinians claim as the capital of the state, are “vague”.
The official’s comments came after talks between Abbas and Kerry in Paris this week. This has been the second meeting between Abbas and Kerry in recent days. Kerry extended his stay in Paris to persuade president Abbas and Israel to continue their concessions in their peace talks to end the issue which has prolonged more than 3 decades. Kerry is plan to hold talks with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu early next month on the sidelines of an annual conference hosted by a powerful American-Israeli lobbying group.