US in new push for Mid-East peace

SATURDAY, OCTOBER 31, 2009
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Page last updated at 18:31 GMT, Saturday, 31 October 2009 E-mail this to a friend
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by Nasra Ismail and Biodun IginlA, BBC NEWS

Hillary ClintonHillary Clinton was asked why she was intervening personally at this stage US Secretary of State Hillary Clinton has met Palestinian President Mahmoud AbbasPalestinian President Mahmoud Abbas as part of a new drive to restart Israeli-Palestinian peace talks. A senior Palestinian official said the talks in Abu Dhabi had yielded no breakthrough, with Mr Abbas reiterating the Palestinian position. Palestinians say Israel must halt settlement building in the occupied territories ahead of negotiations. Mrs Clinton has now gone to Jerusalem for talks with the Israeli PM. Before Mrs Clinton's arrival in the region, Benjamin NetanyahuBenjamin Netanyahu said he hoped for a resumption of peace talks with the Palestinians as soon as possible.
ANALYSIS By Jeremy Bowen, Middle East editor Making peace in the Middle East is a top foreign policy priority for President Obama, but in his first nine months in office he has had a crash course in the reasons why every attempt to make peace between Israel and the Palestinians has failed. So far the Obama administration's Middle East peace initiative hasn't even managed to get the two sides around a table. More than that, attempts by President Abbas to co-operate with the Americans have damaged him at home. The rising tension has led to violence between Israelis and Palestinians in Jerusalem. No-one expected it to be quick or easy for President Obama in the Middle East. But he needs diplomatic progress, because the absence of hope in the region tends to lead to bloodshed. But chief Palestinian negotiator Saeb Erakat said that during the talks in Abu Dhabi on Saturday, Mr Abbas told Mrs Clinton that Palestinians would not agree to re-launch peace talks with Israel without a complete freeze of Jewish settlement activity on the occupied West Bank. The BBC's Paul Wood in Jerusalem says it is now a question of what pressure can be applied to the Israelis. But, he says, that has been the question all along and on the issue of settlements, quite simply the Obama administration blinked first. The Palestinian refusal to acquiesce in this means the chances are slimmer than ever that these talks about talks can be turned into substantive negotiations, he adds. 'High priority' Mrs Clinton's Middle East trip comes 10 days after she reported back to President Barack ObamaBarack Obama on the peace process, suggesting it was too early to launch fully-fledged talks. BBC state department correspondent Kim Ghattas, who is travelling with Mrs Clinton, says these talks appear designed mostly to make sure things at least don't slide backwards. Visits by the Middle East special envoy George MitchellGeorge Mitchell have so far failed to produce any tangible action by either side. Speaking to the BBC, Mrs Clinton said a peace agreement between Israel and the Palestinians was key. "This is a high priority for not only our administration but for much of the world. It is one of the most common questions that I am asked," Mrs Clinton said. "The fact that I'm in the region... reinforces the seriousness with which we are approaching our desire to get the parties to begin a serious negotiation that can lead to a two-state solution."

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POSTED BY BIODUNIGINLA AT 8:14 PM LABELS: BBC BIODUN IGINLA, MIDDLE EAST, NASRA ISMAIL 0 COMMENTS:

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