Arab leaders seek ‘serious’ offer on Mideast peace

15/12/10 23:14 CET

world news

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Arab states said on Wednesday they will not support further talks between Israel and the Palestinians until the United States comes up with a “serious” proposal to advance the peace process.

Foreign Ministers from the 22-nation body issued their statement after a meeting between Palestinian Authority president Mahmoud Abbas and US envoy George Mitchell.

They also said the issue of Israeli settlements would be raised at the UN Security Council.

“Resuming the negotiations will be conditioned on receiving a serious offer that guarantees an end to the Arab-Israeli conflict,” the ministers said in a statement read by Arab League chief Amr Mussa.

The Arab League “sees that the direction of talks has become ineffective and it has decided against the resumption of negotiations,” said Mussa.

The Palestinians insist on a freeze as a precondition to resuming the US-brokered direct peace talks launched September 2.

The talks were suspended three weeks later with the end of an Israeli moratorium on settlement building in the contested West Bank.

Israel has controlled the West Bank since 1967 where close to 500,000 Jews live in more than 100 settlements.

An estimated 2.5 million Palestinians live in the West Bank.

More about: Israel-Palestine Peace Process, Mahmoud Abbas, Palestinian Territories

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