Pat Dollard

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Jerusalem Post:

Palestinian Authority President Mahmoud Abbas said on Wednesday he would seek UN recognition of Palestinian statehood if there was no breakthrough in the peace process by September.

Addressing a meeting of the Palestine Liberation Organization in Ramallah, he said Prime Minister Binyamin Netanyahu’s vision for peace, outlined in a speech on Tuesday, contained “nothing we can build on.”

Earlier Wednesday, senior Fatah member Nabil Shaath rejected Netanyahu’s address to Congress and said that Israel’s policies won’t lead to peace. Shaath accused Netanyahu of having destroyed any chances for peace, effectively waging war on the diplomatic process to bring about a final settlement.

Speaking to Israel Radio, the Palestinian negotiator said that the Palestinian Authority has decided that the way forward is to “do what Israel did in 1948 and go to the United Nations” in order to “ask for the state promised to us.”

Shaath criticized Netanyahu’s repeated claim that an Israel on 1967 borders is “indefensible,” saying insistence on keeping IDF forces on the border and on the Jordan river and not allowing an Arab authority in Jerusalem continue to damage and progress in peace negotiations.

According to Shaath, negotiations with the Netanyahu government have “no credibility,” as the prime minister negotiates while violating Oslo agreements. Shaath was referring to the claim that Israel, even while calling for a halt to settlement construction, has continued to build settlements beyond the Green Line.

The PA negotiator also rejected Netanyahu’s call to cancel the reconciliation agreement between Fatah and Hamas. He said that Hamas came to Fatah denouncing violence and seeking peace with Israel, not war.