US Secretary of State John Kerry on Sunday offered President Mahmoud Abbas incentives to return to direct negotiations with the Zionist entity
US Secretary of State John Kerry on Sunday offered President Mahmoud Abbas incentives to return to direct negotiations with the Zionist entity, Palestinian sources said.
At a meeting in Ramallah, Kerry offered to release all Palestinian funds and to ensure Israel does not withhold Palestinian tax revenue in the future, Palestinian officials told Ma'an news agency.
Washington's top diplomat also offered to extend the Palestinian Authority's jurisdiction, particularly in Area C -- the 60 percent of the West Bank under full Israeli control. The PA only has full jurisdiction of around 18 percent of the West Bank.
Kerry also proposed allowing Palestinians to build more freely in Area C of the West Bank, the officials said.
Abbas responded that Palestinians seek a return to direct talks, but that ‘Israel’ must stop illegal settlement building and release Palestinian prisoners first, according to the officials.
The US secretary of state arrived in the occupied Palestinian territories on Sunday for a new round of talks with Israeli and Palestinian leaders on how to break a years-long impasse in direct settlement negotiations.
Kerry headed straight for Ramallah where he met Abbas for their third meeting in just over a month.
Ahead of the meeting, Palestinian Authority Foreign Minister Riyad al-Malki said Abbas was likely to just listen to what Kerry had to say, "We will just listen to him. Kerry listened to our position, and we will listen to him to see if he will bring something new," he told AFP on Saturday. "This meeting was called by Kerry, and President Abbas will meet him to see what he has because the United States knows our position clearly."
Kerry was on Monday to take part in a ceremony for ‘Holocaust Memorial Day’ before talks with Palestinian Authority premier Salam Fayyad in the afternoon, and then a meeting with Israeli President Shimon Peres.
He will meet Netanyahu on Tuesday morning before leaving for London.
