 |
Palestinians, Israel to Resume Talks Sunday on Interim Issues
Palestinians and Israel will start a "new phase" of intensified negotiations on Sunday, on interim issues, in the wake of the collapse of Camp David summit, Palestinian spokeswoman Hanan Ashrawi said Friday in the West Bank city of Ramallah.
The two sides, headed respectively by Palestinian chief negotiator Saeb Erekat and his Israeli counterpart Oded Eran, will discuss the issues such as a delayed Israeli troop withdrawal from the West Bank and the release of Palestinian prisoners from Israeli jails.
"I can safely say you are going to see an intensive, stepped up diplomatic campaign or movement on all fronts because nobody is interested in seeing a collapse," Ashrawi told reporters.
Palestinian leader Yasser Arafat and Israeli Prime Minister Ehud Barak failed in their two-week summit hosted by United States President Bill Clinton, which concluded on July 25, to reach an agreement on the final status between the two sides.
The final-status talks include such thorny issues as the status of Jerusalem, Palestinian statehood, the fate of Palestinian refugees and Jewish settlements, water, border and security.
Arafat has repeatedly expressed his intention to declare independence on September 13 after the interim period stipulated in the 1993 Oslo accord expires, even without an agreement with Israel.
In This Section
|