West Asia

Kerry: Mideast talks ‘hard work’

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US Secretary of State John Kerry has acknowledged that some of the main disputes between Israelis and Palestinian are still unsolved after more than 20 rounds of negotiations.

Kerry, who is on his 10th visit to the Middle East to mediate the so-called peace talks between Israelis and Palestinians, said his effort had little progress.

“This is hard work,” he told reporters after a meeting with Acting Palestinian Authority Chief Mahmoud Abbas in the occupied West Bank, their second in two days.

“We’re not there yet, but we are making progress,” Kerry said outside Abbas’ West Bank headquarters. “We are beginning to flesh out the toughest hurdles yet to be overcome.”

The top US diplomat said he needs more time to convince Israeli authorities and Palestinian Authority officials to agree on a framework for negotiations.

After the meeting, Kerry travelled back to al-Quds (Jerusalem) for his third set of discussions with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu in as many days.

Both Israeli and Palestinian Authority officials have been blaming each other for trying to scupper the talks.

Tel Aviv claims Palestinians are not serious about negotiations. Palestinian leaders condemn Israel’s announcements of new construction in the West Bank and East Jerusalem, where Israel has occupied since the 1967 Middle East war. They say the settlement activity undermines any chance of peace.

Palestinian authorities have said they will fight the illegal construction in the International Criminal Court if the talks fail.

Most of the world, including the US government, considers the settlements illegal under international law and an obstacle to peace but Israel continues to expand them.

Kerry had given Israelis and Palestinians a nine-month deadline to reach a peace deal. The two sides are now four months into the deadline with little progress.

He urges both sides to agree to a framework for an interim accord ahead of a deal in April, which would launch another year of talks aimed at a comprehensive deal.

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