Barghouthi: Abbas should reconsider talks - cover for illegal settlement expansion

Ma'an - Palestinian lawmaker Mustafa Barghouthi said Monday that any concessions made by Palestinians in negotiations would only embolden Israel

Speaking at a press conference in Ramallah, Barghouthi urged President Mahmoud Abbas to reconsider his decision to engage in direct talks, set to resume Thursday in Washington after a 20-month hiatus.

Commenting on Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s reluctance to extend the 10-month partial freeze on settlement building, due to expire on 26 September, Barghouthi noted that in practice, illegal settlement construction has continued in Jerusalem and the West Bank throughout the freeze.


The Palestinian National Initiative Secretary-General added that settlement building looks likely to intensify significantly at the end of next month, and said negotiations were a cover for illegal settlement expansion.

The lawmaker said Israel had already derailed the talks by setting provocative preconditions, such as insisting on the recognition of Israel as a Jewish state, which he said would liquidate the rights of Palestinians living inside Israel, and consecrate the apartheid regime.

The US stance had backfired, and not one of President Barack Obama’s promises was fulfilled, Barghouthi continued, noting that the US administration said terms of reference for talks should be decided by the two parties. In this way, he added, the US granted Israel the right to veto issues in negotiations.

“Among the many international, Arab and Palestinian officials I met with recently, no one expressed even the slightest optimism about the success of the negotiations. The direct talks are going to be another Israeli game as no real Israeli partner is available for peace,” Barghouthi concluded.