Palestinian negotiator to push statehood case with Kerry
Chief Palestinian negotiator Saeb Erekat will present plans to US Secretary of State John Kerry on Tuesday calling for a time table on ending Israel's occupation of the West Bank and East Jerusalem, Palestinian officials said.
Erekat and intelligence chief Majid Faraj will hold a series of meetings with senior officials in Washington in which they will press the case for Palestinian statehood, amid frustration after a year of talks between Israel and Palestinian Authority President Mahmoud Abbas collapsed in April.
The discussions with Kerry will focus on establishing "a timeframe for ending Israel's occupation to be agreed as soon as possible and not after the end of this year", said a Palestinian official familiar with the plan Erekat will lay out.
