Israel stipulates recognition as a Jewish state for resumption of peace talks

The new Israeli government has stipulated impossible pre-conditions to the resumption of the stalled Palestinian-Israeli negotiations, the Israeli daily newspaper Maariv said on Tuesday.

According to Maariv, the Israeli government headed by Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has demanded that Palestinians recognise Israel as a Jewish state in exchange for Palestinians demands for a freeze on illegal settlement construction.

“This is opposite to what the justice minister Tzipi Livni said yesterday,” the newspaper said. “Livnis said that the recognising Israel as a Jewish state is not a condition for reviving talks with Palestinians.”

The new pre-conditions, the Israeli daily said, makes the distance between both sides very wide.

Regarding Palestinian demands, the newspaper revealed that they have asked for the release of 123 Palestinian prisoners currently held in Israeli jails, the freezing of settlements, that Israel regularly transfers tax revenues to the Palestinians, and that the map delineating Palestinian-Israeli borders be prepared.

The newspaper reported Israeli pre-conditions as being, “Freezing Palestinian actions in the UN, not going to the ICC, ending incitement against Israel and recognising Israel as a Jewish state.”

US secretary of State, John Kerry, met Netanyahu and other ministers in his government on Monday to discuss stalled Palestinian-Israeli talks. He is to meet them again today before holding a press conference on recent developments.