Israel, Palestinians Still Out Of Sync
Israel on Monday approved the release of 441 Palestinian prisoners and pledged not to build any new settlements in the West Bank, but it stopped short of American demands to halt construction in existing settlements before a crucial U.S.-hosted Mideast conference.
Israel announced the moves ahead of a meeting between Prime Minister Ehud Olmert and Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas.
But the Israeli and Palestinian leaders failed to complete a document on Palestinian statehood that is to be presented at an international peace conference in the U.S. planned for next week, reports CBS News correspondent Robert Berger.
The key issues include Jerusalem, refugees and borders, and Israel prefers a vague document while the Palestinians want a timetable for statehood. The Palestinians say without substance, the peace conference could be little more than a photo-op.
"There are serious gaps. I mean if it was easy it would have been done a long time ago," said Israeli spokesman Mark Regev.
Seeking to drum up support for the conference, Olmert is heading to Egypt on Tuesday for talks with President Hosni Mubarak, his office said. Arab League members are to decide on Friday whether they will join the gathering. High-level Arab attendance is seen as crucial to its success.
With the outcome of Annapolis uncertain, Israel has been under American pressure to take steps to bolster Abbas, including a settlement freeze and a large-scale release of Palestinian prisoners.
A settlement freeze, and a related promise Monday to dismantle tiny settlement outposts, are key Israeli commitments under the "road map," a U.S.-backed peace plan that stalled shortly after its inception in 2003. The U.S. has been trying to revive the road map ahead of the peace conference.
At a Cabinet meeting, Olmert said Israel would not build any more settlements in the West Bank.
"Let's be straight, we committed ourselves in the road map not to build new settlements and we will not build any," Olmert was quoted as saying by his spokeswoman, Miri Eisin.
But he indicated there would be no end to construction in existing settlements, as required by the road map.
"We won't choke off under any circumstances the existing settlements," Olmert said, according to another meeting participant. He spoke on condition of anonymity under Israeli civil service guidelines.
Israel has built no new authorized settlements in nearly a decade. But it has continued to rapidly expand existing settlements to accommodate what it calls "natural growth."
Palestinian officials reacted coolly to Olmert's announcement.
"Either it's a 100 percent settlement freeze or no settlement freeze. There is nothing in the middle," said Palestinian negotiator Saeb Erekat.
Former Israeli ambassador to Washington Danny Ayalon wonders what the Palestinians will give in return.
"They should do something in return, and the least of which is to eliminate, or at least to fight, terror in an effective way," Ayalon said.
The Cabinet overwhelmingly approved Olmert's proposal to release 441 prisoners. Although the release would be the largest in years, it fell short of Palestinian calls to free some 2,000 prisoners. Israel holds an estimated 9,000 Palestinian prisoners.
"We welcome the release of any prisoners," said Palestinian Foreign Minister Riad Malki. "But this is not enough. We will continue demanding the release of all prisoners."
Olmert and Abbas have been meeting frequently to lay the groundwork for the U.S. conference.
"We want to continue our talks regarding the preparation for Annapolis, and we need to hear from him (Olmert) things that will satisfy us, so we can go to Annapolis on a solid basis," Abbas told reporters shortly before his meeting with Olmert in Jerusalem.
But Erekat said there were "serious problems" in the preparations.
At the summit, Israel and the Palestinians hope to renew formal peace talks, which broke down in violence seven years ago. The U.S. also hopes the gathering will give an international boost to Abbas in his power struggle against the Hamas militant group, which now controls the Gaza Strip. However, preparations have run into trouble.
The Palestinians want the conference to address issues at the heart of the conflict with Israel, such as the borders of a future Palestinian state, shared sovereignty over disputed Jerusalem and the fate of Palestinian refugees. Israel says the summit should be a forum to formally renew talks, with discussions on core issues to follow.
"The negotiations will start after Annapolis and it will be very intensive, very serious," Olmert told reporters Monday. "It will deal with all the core issues that are a part of the process that has to lead to two nation states for two nations."
Amid the disagreements, the U.S. has not announced an official date or invitation list for the summit.
In a boost for peace efforts, international Mideast envoy Tony Blair said Israel and the Palestinians would announce on Monday a number of economic projects that could create tens of thousands of jobs for Palestinians.
Among the projects will be a Turkish-sponsored industrial park in the southern West Bank, a sewage project in northern Gaza and road construction in the West Bank, a Palestinian official said.