Abbas: No peace talks before Israel gets back on track
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Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas on Sunday ruled out restarting peace talks with Israel unless Israel commits itself to a series of basic requirements.
"It will not be acceptable for the Palestinians to resume the peace negotiations with Israel without full stop of the settlement activities and defining the references of the peace process that include ending the Israeli occupation and establishing the Palestinian statehood," Abbas said in a speech broadcast Sunday evening on the state-run Palestinian television.
The peace talks have been stalled since the beginning of this year. The Palestinians insist that Israel should halt all settlement activities in the West Bank before any peace negotiation, while Israel said it will continue the construction of settlement due to "the natural growth".
Meanwhile, Abbas accused Islamic Hamas movement of maneuvering to avoid national Palestinian reconciliation.
"Hamas' campaign has revealed its real goals in evading the maturity of signing the reconciliation," Abbas said, referring to Hamas' request from Egypt to postpone the Cairo-sponsored national dialogue which aims at restoring political unity to the Hamas-controlled Gaza Strip and the West Bank.
Hamas said Egypt has agreed to delay the reconciliation which was scheduled on Oct. 25 but there has been no official confirmation from Egypt.
