France presents plan to resume Israel-Palestine peace talks

[News_Editor]

France presents plan to resume Israel-Palestine peace talks

2011-06-02 23:32:44 GMT+7 (ICT)

RAMALLAH (BNO NEWS) -- France Foreign Minister Alain Juppe on Thursday presented Palestinian leaders a new plan for resuming the Israel-Palestine peace talks which have been stalled since last year.

According to the Palestine News Network, the French proposal is based on the 1967 borders with additional land swaps to compensate Israeli settlement on Palestinian territory.

In addition, Juppe proposed a one-year time frame to resolve the issue of Jerusalem as Israel said it will not cede any part of the historic city despite the fact that many Arabs reside in East Jerusalem.

The proposal was presented to Palestinian leaders during a joint conference with Prime Minister Salam Fayyad in Ramallah. The plan was previously shown to Palestinian Authority President Mahmoud Abbas in Rome on Wednesday.

"The situation will be very difficult for the whole world if there are no advances in Israeli-Palestinian relations before September," said Juppe in relation to Palestine's intentions to seek state recognition from the UN General Assembly that month.

The French minister added that his country is willing to transform an international donors' conference that is scheduled to take place in Paris into a "broader political conference involving the negotiation process."

Last year, Israel and the Palestinian Authority stalled the peace negotiations, which were supported by the United States and the United Nations, after the Jewish nation refused to extend a moratorium on settlement building in occupied Palestinian territory in September.

In response, President Abbas broke off direct talks after as recommended by Hamas. Israel resumed settlement constructions even though they were labeled as a violation of international law by the international community.

Palestine demanded a stop to settlement construction in the disputed East Jerusalem and West Bank area as a key element for continuing peace talks, aimed at reaching a two-state solution based in the 1967 Green Line.

On May 4, Fatah, Hamas and all other Palestinian factions signed an historic unity deal in Cairo. As a result, the Hamas-led government in Gaza and the Palestinian Authority in the West Bank will be dissolved and replaced by a single cabinet of independent technocrats.

Israel urged the Palestinian Authority to choose either peace with Israel or peace with Hamas as there "is no possibility for peace with both." Hamas said that the unity government will be formed within ten days but so far factions have not agreed on a cabinet and elections were delayed.

Last month, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu rejected the U.S.-proposed solution based on the 1967 borders as that measure will leave a large population of Israelis in Judea and Samaria and outside Israel's borders.

-- © BNO News All rights reserved 2011-06-02

[kuffki]

I am somewhat fascinated and puzzled to read news like this.

For starters why does Palestinian News Network report on French proposal yet none of the other News Networks know anything about this news, not even French News Networks.

Its the second time already Palestinian News report on something that either did not take place, or was not said or even existed.

[Scott]

I have deleted a series of off-topic posts. This section of the forum is the World News and needs to be restricted to a serious discussion of the issue.

I would suggest that those interested in a broader range discussion with musical video clips, do so in OTB.

This thread needs to be more strictly confined to the OP and the implications and comments directly related to the subject.