Quds, Nov 15, SPA -- Palestinian officials said Sunday they are preparing to ask the United Nations to endorse an independent state without Israel"s consent because they are losing hope they can achieve their aspirations through peace talks. The announcement drew a harsh rebuke from Israeli officials, AP reported. In the West Bank, meanwhile, the Palestinians announced plans to extend the term of President Mahmoud Abbas after a recommendation to postpone presidential elections indefinitely. Chief Palestinian negotiator Saeb Erekat said frustrated Palestinians had decided to turn to the U.N. Security Council after 18 years of on-again, off-again negotiations with Israel. The Palestinians seek an independent state that includes the West Bank, Gaza Strip and east Jerusalem _ areas captured by Israel in the 1967 Mideast war. «Now is our defining moment. We went into this peace process in order to achieve a two-state solution,» he said. «The endgame is to tell the Israelis that now the international community has recognized the two-state solution on the "67 borders.» U.S. efforts to restart Israeli-Palestinian peace talks are deadlocked. Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has urged the Palestinians to negotiate with him. But they refuse, saying Netanyahu must first stop building settlements on lands they claim. Netanyahu refuses to endorse the 1967 lines as the basis for an agreement. Even if the U.N. endorses the Palestinian idea, it would be virtually impossible to implement while Israel remains in control of the West Bank and east Jerusalem. Nearly 500,000 Israeli settlers live in these areas, in addition to thousands of Israeli troops stationed on bases. The Palestinians already declared independence unilaterally on Nov. 15, 1988. The declaration was recognized by dozens of countries, but never implemented on the ground. -- SPA
