Middle East News

Report: Israel submitted 22-point document to Palestinians

Jan 5, 2012, 12:18 GMT

Ramallah - Israel submitted a 22-point document to the Palestinians this week during their first face-to-face meeting in nearly 16 months, a London-based Arabic newspaper reported Thursday.

Nimr Hammad, an advisor to Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas, confirmed to al-Quds al-Arabi that Israel had submitted the document, but declined to give details.

The newspaper nonetheless reported it had 'learned' about the document's content.

It reportedly states that Israel is willing to withdraw from some Arab neighbourhoods of East Jerusalem, but not to the lines that existed before 1967. It is also reportedly willing to evacuate some, but not all, West Bank settlements.

The reported paper also reiterates that Israel wants, after any peace deal, a temporary military presence in West Bank areas it deems important for its security. It states that any peace should be implemented gradually.

Hammad said the next Israeli-Palestinian meeting, to discuss responses from both sides on the papers submitted by the other in Tuesday's parley at the Jordanian Foreign Ministry, could be January 13 in Amman

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu's spokesman, Mark Regev, would not comment on the report.

He would only refer to Jordanian Foreign Minister Nasser Judeh's on the record statement Tuesday, in which he said that Israel would submit its reply to the Palestinian proposal on borders and security in the next meeting.