Netanyahu: Hope PA doesn’t turn its back on peace

Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said Saturday he hoped the Palestinians refrain from suspending the peace talks, despite the apparent impasse posed by the end of the settlement freeze.

Netanyahu, whose statement came mere hours after the PLO announced the move, said that "The way to achieve historic peace between the nations is to seriously sit down and negotiate, not walk away.

"I hope the Palestinian decide against turning their back on peace and continue with the negotiation in order to achieve a peace deal within a year," he said.

It was only last month, he continued, "That the Palestinian agreed to engage in direct peace talks, sans preconditions, after my government offered a series of unilateral gestures to prompt these talks.

"In the past, and for 17 years, the Palestinians held direct talks with Israel's governments, while construction went on in Judea and Samaria, including in the final year of the last government."

Defense Minister Ehud Barak echoed the sentiment and called on the Palestinians to continue the peace negotiations, expressing his confidence that a way around the deadlock can be found.

Barak called on the Palestinian leadership to "demonstrate responsibility" and ensure the talks continue: "The political process is critical to the future of the region and an agreement for peace with security is the hope of millions of citizens around the Middle East," he said.

'We must all behave rationally'

He expressed his confidence that with intensive debate between Israel, the US, the Palestinians and leaders of the Arab world it would be possible within the coming week to find a way to continue the talks.

At the end of the PLO executive committee meeting, Yasser Abed Rabbo read the official announcement, saying the Palestinians would agree to return to the negotiating table only after Israel had taken various steps – most importantly, freezing building in West Bank settlements.

"The Palestinian leadership sees Israel as responsible for the suspension of the talks," he said.

Previously, after leaving the meeting in Ramallah, spokesman for the president, Nabil Abu Rdainah had said, "There will be no negotiations in the shadow of continued settlement."

Because no mention was made in the official announcement of quitting the negotiations, sources told Ynet that the Palestinian Authority was still open to any US solutions that may be proposed.

'PM must stand strong'

Following the PLO's announcement, MK Arieh Eldad (National Union) called on Netanyahu to withdraw from the Israeli-Palestinian peace process: "These talks would have brought about the inception of an Arab state in the middle of Israel. We must use the escape route which has presented itself," he said.

The US, meanwhile, has insisted that the freeze must be extended, and UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon has spoken with Netanyahu, asking him to restrain settlement construction.

Also Saturday, Peace Now Director Yariv Oppenheimer blamed Netanyahu for "dismissing Israel's political and security interests in favor of capitulation to Yesha Council."

Oppenheimer said the Left will organize massive rallies should the peace process come to an end.

"The Palestinians' abandonment of the talks and blaming Israel for the failure is according to the script written in advance by Abu Mazen (Abbas)," MK Tzipi Hotovely (Likud) said Saturday evening. "It is important that Prime Minister Netanyahu stands strong before the world to secure the national interest and fulfill the Zionist project throughout the Land of Israel."

Social Affairs Minister Isaac Herzog, meanwhile, demanded Netanyahu call a meeting of the National Security Cabinet, over what he called "the critical point at which the peace talks are." Any future decision as to the talks' fate, he added, should be made by the forum.

Just a short time before the end of the construction freeze, Netanyahu had asked his ministers to avoid being interviewed. On Saturday, after the PLO's announcement, the prime minister again asked his ministers to remain silent on the issue and avoid giving interviews on the subject of the deadlocked negotiations.

Roni Sofer and Yair Altman contributed to this report.

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