Erekat denies media claims of a meeting with Israel next week

Senior PLO Executive Committee member Saeb Erekat has denied media claims that a meeting will be held between Palestinian and Israeli officials in Jordan at the end of next week.

“We have received nothing from the Quartet about such a meeting,” said Erekat. “When we asked for clarification of US State Department spokesperson Victoria Nuland’s statements about a preliminary meeting in Jordan, they were denied.”

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Erekat said that the Palestinian Authority has been corresponding with the Quartet over the political process. PA President Mahmoud Abbas continues to stress that there is no contradiction between Palestine’s drive for full member status at the UN and the resumption of negotiations if Israel agrees to halt settlement construction and return to pre-1967 borders.

According to the Secretary General of the PLO Executive Committee, Yasser Abed Rabbo, the Quartet efforts are focused in the wrong direction because “Israel gives no weight to any effort, agreement or commitment”. He warned that the Israeli attempt to legalise settlement outposts in the occupied West Bank and occupied Jerusalem could kill any prospects for negotiations.