JERUSALEM, Aug. 21 (CWNews.com) - Prospects for early agreement on an Israeli-Palestinian peace accord have become more remote with a tough statement from Palestinian leaders and a new resignation from the Israeli leadership.
Negotiators for the Palestinian Authority announced on August 20 that their claim to West Jerusalem as the capital of a new Palestinian state is «not negotiable.» They added that if Israel carried out threats to annex areas in that section of the city, they might respond by regarding Jewish settlers in the West Bank as hostages.
Israeli Prime Minister Ehud Barak has said that if the Palestinian leaders issue a unilateral proclamation of their independence, he might respond by claiming Israeli control over areas in the West Bank where Jewish settlers have staked their claims. But even that bellicose statement was not enough to stop new defections from Barak's ruling coalition. With many Israeli hardliners arguing that he has conceded too much to the Palestinian side, Barak faces the constant prospect of a no-confidence vote in the Knesset, the Israeli parliament.
On the Palestinian side, meanwhile, negotiators have not moved from a September 13 deadline. If a peace accord has not been set by that date, they say, the Palestinian Authority will issue a declaration of independence, establishing a new state without Israeli approval.