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Erekat insisted that: 'There is no meaning to prolonging the negotiations, even for one more additional hour, if Israel, represented by its current government, continues to disregard international law' https://www.middleeastmonitor.com
Erekat: There is no meaning to prolonging the negotiations The Palestinian Authority's chief negotiator, Dr Saeb Erekat, has stated that the Palestinians reject any extension of the current round of negotiations with Israel beyond the agreed upon deadline at the end of April. US Secretary of State John Kerry had suggested on Thursday that the negotiations would likely continue beyond the end of April. In response, Dr Erekat insisted that: "There is no meaning to prolonging the negotiations, even for one more additional hour, if Israel, represented by its current government, continues to disregard international law." Speaking to reporters, Kerry acknowledged that reaching a final agreement between the Palestinians and Israel could take another nine months or more. He hopes to achieve a framework agreement for further negotiations by the end of April. However, the Palestinians are making it clear that they refuse any extension of the current round of negotiations with Israel beyond the agreed upon deadline. A member of the Executive Committee of the PLO, Dr Hanan Ashrawi, also noted that, "We are not interested in extra negotiations. The president committed himself to return to the negotiations until the end of April and that is the specified period." She added that, "We don't intend to give Israel more time to expand the settlements, continue the Judaisation of Jerusalem and carry out ethnic cleansing against the Palestinians."
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