RAMALLAH, Aug. 22 (Xinhua) -- A Palestinian official said on Sunday Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu delivered a blow to peace talks before they start next month as scheduled.
"The preconditions" which Netanyahu made on Sunday that the Palestinians should recognize Israel as the state of Jews "are a relapse to the negotiations before they start," said Wassel Abu Yousef, a member of the Executive Committee of Palestine Liberation Organization (PLO).
"There is a Palestinian rejection to any Israeli demand to recognize Israel as a Jewish state. This is one of the Palestinian taboos," Abu Yousef told Xinhua.
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| Israel's Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu addresses reporters during a news briefing in August 16, 2010. |
In his first comments about the direct talks that the United States invited Israel and the Palestinians to begin on Sept. 2 in Washington, Netanyahu predicted "difficult but possible" agreement with the Palestinians.
The PLO accepted the U.S. invitation on Friday after months of standstill, bypassing pledges not to go to face-to-face talks before Israel clearly announces a freeze on all settlement constructions in the occupied West Bank and East Jerusalem.
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