"I do hope you're not going to wreck the talks!" 27 September 2010

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu waves an Israeli flag as he sits across the negotiating table from Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas in a continuation of peace talks. They sit on the border between 'Palestinian land' and a huge collection of earthmoving machines waiting to start building as the 10 month moratorium on West Bank settlement construction nears its end. Netanyahu hopes that Abbas is 'not going to wreck the talks'. 'The Palestinians have dug in ahead of a crucial meeting with Washington's Mideast envoy, saying they can't be expected to continue peace talks unless Israel reverses a decision to lift restrictions on West Bank settlement construction. Neither side seems to want the month-old talks to collapse, but Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas are publicly at an impasse. EU foreign policy chief Catherine Ashton will meet with Netanyahu, Abbas and Mitchell over two days to try to prevent the collapse of negotiations. She reiterated in a statement that the European Union regrets Israel's decision not to extend a 10-month-old moratorium on West Bank housing that expired this week. Netanyahu has said extending the construction curb could fracture his pro-settlement governing coalition, but has also said he wants to keep negotiating with Abbas. If he stays in the talks without a moratorium, Abbas would lose more credibility among Palestinians already skeptical of Washington's ability to deliver a deal. Yet Abbas may be reluctant to walk away from talks because his international standing and future as a leader are tied to the quest for a peace deal. Obama wants a deal on the terms of a Palestinian state alongside Israel within a year.' (Associated Press 30 September 2010)

Quantity: 2 digital cartoon(s).