Monday, August 26, 2013

Palestinian Negotiators Suspend Talks With Israel After Deadly Raid

Palestinian negotiators suspend talks with Israel after deadly raid: official

English.news.cn
2013-08-26 20:09:41

RAMALLAH, Aug. 26 (Xinhua) -- The Palestinian negotiators suspended a peace talk session with their Israeli counterparts scheduled on Monday in protest at the death of three Palestinians in an Israeli raid in the West Bank city of Ramallah in early morning, a local official said.

Yasser Abed Rabbo, a member of the Palestine Liberation Organization (PLO) Executive Committee, told Xinhua that the negotiations, which was slated to take place in the West Bank city of Jericho, was canceled "due to the Israeli aggression" in Qalandiya refugee camp.

Israeli forces shot dead three Palestinians and wounded 20 others during clashes with residents of Qalandya refugee camp in northern Ramallah on early Monday morning.

The residents hurled rocks and empty bottles to the Israeli forces, while the latter responded with live ammunition, a witness told Xinhua.

"The Israeli escalation against our people is unjustifiable and it aims at thwarting the political efforts to strengthen the negotiations," Abed Rabbo said.

Meanwhile, a source close to Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas said that the Palestinian leadership has sent "a stern protest" to the U.S. administration who sponsored the peace talks, urging Washington to intervene and blame Israel for "violating the negotiations."

The resumption of the talks came after nearly a three-year halt. The canceled meeting in Jericho is the fourth official session of negotiations between the two sides since their resumption in July.

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