On 25 November 2009, Israeli Prime Minister, Benjamin Netanyahu, imposed a 10-month construction freeze on all of its settlements in the West Bank. Calling it "a painful step that will encourage the peace process" and urged the Palestinians to respond. Israel's decision was widely seen as due to pressure from the Obama administration, which urged the sides to seize the opportunity to resume talks. The Palestinian Authority rejected the gesture as being insignificant due to the limited construction on some pre-approved housing units, failure to extend the freeze to East Jerusalem, and failure to dismantle already-built settlement outposts illegal under Israeli law. The Palestinians refused to enter negotiations, despite Israeli appeals to do so. A partial freeze on construction in
East Jerusalem, which Israel annexed in 1980, and regards as its sovereign territory, was imposed under the observation of U.S. consular officials, though not acknowledged by the Israeli government. On 19 July, Israeli Prime Minister Netanyahu froze a major construction project in
Pisgat Ze'ev as a "diplomatic gesture" to the United States. However, some construction continued, and the Obama administration voiced disappointment over the matter, stating that it viewed construction there as a violation of the settlement freeze. On 10 March 2010, Israel approved the construction of 1,600 apartments in the
Ramat Shlomo neighborhood during a visit by US Vice President
Joe Biden, sparking a diplomatic crisis between Israel and the United States. A partial step towards full negotiations took place around the middle of March 2010, as Israeli and Palestinian teams began indirect negotiations through US intermediaries. These negotiations were interrupted within few days by the Palestinian Authority in protest of Israeli actions in East Jerusalem. They were renewed in May of that year. On 10 May 2010, Israel joined the
OECD. Previously, Palestinian Prime Minister
Salam Fayyad had written to the organization, urging it to suspend Israel's application, and before the vote, called numerous OECD heads of state to lobby against Israeli membership. Palestinian Authority Foreign Minister
Riyad al-Malki also wrote to OECD members that accepting Israel would legitimize its "racist" and "dangerous" policies towards Palestinians. On 31 May 2010, relations between Israel and the Palestinians were further strained when Israel carried out the
Gaza flotilla raid. Palestinian President
Mahmoud Abbas stated that "Israel has committed a
massacre", and declared a three-day mourning period. Palestinian official
Mustafa Barghouti said that the attack would lead to the
international boycott growing in strength, and called Israel "the most despicable state in the world". Prime Minister
Salam Fayyad also criticized the attack. On 8 July 2010, Palestinian President
Mahmoud Abbas told the
Arab League that the Palestinian Authority would abandon peace talks and attack Israel if the Arab states would invade, saying "if you want war, and if all of you will fight Israel, we are in favor. But the Palestinians will not fight alone because they don't have the ability to do it". In August 2010
Barack Obama and
Hillary Clinton stated that a
Palestinian state was possible to achieve within one year. A renewed effort to negotiate peace was initiated by the
Obama administration by getting the parties involved to agree to direct talks for the first time in a long while. U.S. President
Barack Obama was successful in obtaining support for direct talks from
Egypt and
Jordan. The Egyptian and Jordanian governments managed to persuade the Palestinian leadership to accept Israel's settlement freeze and enter direct talks nine months after the start of the freeze. The aim of the talks was to forge the framework of a final agreement within one year on a two-state solution, although general expectations of a success were fairly low. On September 14 a second round of Middle East peace talks between Israel and the
Palestinian Authority concluded in
Sharm el-Sheikh,
Egypt. Palestinian Authority President
Mahmoud Abbas stated that during the talks, the Palestinian Authority and Israel agreed on the principle of a land swap, with Israel exchanging small parts of its own territory in exchange for border settlement blocs. The issue of the ratio of land Israel would give to the Palestinians in exchange for keeping border settlement blocs was an issue of dispute, with the Palestinians demanding that the ratio be 1:1, and Israel offering less. During the direct negotiations between Israel and the Palestinians,
Hamas and
Hezbollah reaffirmed to threat peace talks if both sides were matriculated towards any possible agreement. A Hamas-led coalition of 13 Palestinian militant groups
initiated a violent campaign to disrupt peace talks between Israel and the Palestinian Authority. A series of attacks killed and wounded eight Israelis, including two pregnant women, between August and September 2010. Israeli and Palestinian Authority security forces responded with raids that resulted in the deaths and arrests of militants involved in the attacks.
Rocket and mortar attacks from the Hamas-run
Gaza Strip also increased in September. On September 21, 2010 Palestinian Prime Minister
Salam Fayyad stormed out of a meeting in New York, which was held as part of the
Ad Hoc Liaison Committee (AHLC) meetings, and canceled a scheduled joint press conference with the Israeli President
Shimon Peres and Israeli Deputy Foreign Minister
Danny Ayalon following Ayalon's demand that the meeting summary refer to the notion of "
two states for two peoples", meaning Israel as a Jewish state alongside a Palestinian state, rather than a Palestinian state alongside a bi-national Israel. Ayalon later commented on the event, stating: "What I say is that if the Palestinians are not willing to talk about two states for two peoples, let alone a Jewish state for Israel, then there's nothing to talk about", and that "if the Palestinians think that they can create one Palestinian state and one dual-nationality state, this will not happen". President Obama indicated in a speech to the
United Nations he held on September 23, 2010 that he was hopeful of a diplomatic peace within one year. Contrary to popular belief, Israel did not boycott the speech, but did not attend due to the Jewish holiday of
Sukkot. As the Israeli 10-month freeze on
settlement construction was nearing its expiration date on September 26, Mahmoud Abbas stated that he would abandon the negotiations if settlement construction was renewed. He said "Israel has a moratorium for 10 months and it should be extended for three to four months more to give peace a chance." In the view of the Palestinian Authority leadership, Israeli construction of settlements constitutes Israel's imposition of "
facts on the ground" in the West Bank, and is a violation of international law. See generally,
International law and Israeli settlements On September 22, the
Knesset passed a law requiring a public referendum and the votes of at least 60 Knesset members ahead of any withdrawal from
East Jerusalem or the
Golan Heights. The law was criticized by the Palestinian Authority and the
Arab League. On September 25, a day before the Israeli settlement freeze's expiration, Palestinian Authority President Mahmoud Abbas claimed in the
United Nations General Assembly that Israeli settlements were a key issue, stating that "Israel must choose between peace and the continuation of settlements". The United States pushed Israel to extend the settlement freeze. Israel's prime minister
Benjamin Netanyahu called on
West Bank settlers to "show restraint" following the end of the freeze. Several Israeli right-wing politicians called for a swift resumption of construction, and backed settlers' plans to resume building as soon as possible.
Avigdor Lieberman, the Israeli Foreign Minister and leader of the
Yisrael Beiteinu party, rebuffed claims that the renewal of West Bank settlement construction was a provocative move meant to torpedo the peace talks. Lieberman said the Palestinians failed to accept the gesture of the moratorium for nine months and "now they are pressuring Israel to continue the very freeze they rejected." Lieberman said Israel was ready to enter peace talks with no preconditions. Lieberman also ruled out that a Palestinian state will be established in the coming of two years. The rejection to extend the moratorium was harshly criticized worldwide. Abbas stated that Netanyahu cannot be trusted as a 'genuine' peace negotiator if the freeze is not extended. On October 2, 2010 the
Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas stated that peace negotiations will not continue until
Israel imposes a new freeze for the construction of Israeli settlements in the
West Bank, thus putting a
de facto halt to the current Israel-Palestine peace negotiations. On October 4, 2010, Netanyahu stated that the Israelis were working behind the scenes with the United States to resolve the issues and resume talks. Israeli sources had said that this would involve a 60-day extension of the freeze. Israeli ambassador to the United States
Michael Oren said that the United States had offered Israel "incentives" for an extension of the freeze. Chief Palestinian negotiator
Nabil Shaath accepted a US proposal to extend the West Bank settlement freeze by another two months. Sha'ath said the Palestinians accept such a limited extension provided the two sides can reach an agreement on the borders between Israel and a future Palestine in those two months. After a meeting in
Libya on 8 October 2010, the
Arab League leaders announce their support for
Palestinian Authority President
Mahmoud Abbas's decision to stop peace talks with Israel over the expiration of the 10 month Israeli moratorium on construction in the West Bank. The Arab League also stated that it would give the United States another month to persuade Israel to renew the settlement moratorium and that "The committee will convene again in a month to study the alternatives". On 11 October 2010, during a speech at the opening of the third session of the 18th Knesset, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu offered a settlement freeze if the Palestinian Authority would declare its recognition of Israel as the
homeland of the Jewish people. The Palestinian Authority quickly rejected Netanyahu's proposal and stated that the issue of the Jewishness of the state has nothing to do with the matter. Palestinian negotiators announced that their recognition of the Jewish state would undermine the rights of
Israeli-Arabs, and eliminate the right of return for millions of
Palestinian refugees to Israel proper. On October 15, it was reported that Israel had approved new construction in
East Jerusalem. On 13 October 2010
Yasser Abed Rabbo, the secretary general of the
PLO, stated in a press statement that the PLO would recognize Israel as a "
Jewish state" in exchange for a sovereign
Palestinian state within the
1967 borders which would include
East Jerusalem stating that "Any formulation the Americans present – even asking us to call Israel the 'Chinese State' – we will agree to it, as long as we receive the 1967 borders. We have recognized Israel in the past, but Israel has not recognized the Palestinian state." Abed Rabbo's statements were immediately disowned by the Palestinian political factions, mainly because his remark were viewed as conceding the
right of return for millions of
Palestinian refugees to Israel proper. The
Fatah movement called for Abed Rabbo's immediate resignation. Palestinian negotiator
Nabil Shaath dismissed Abed Rabbo's statements and claimed that "Abed Rabbo's statements don't represent the views of the PLO or Fatah movement or President Abbas". In addition, the Hamas government in Gaza called for the immediate resignation of Abed Rabbo. In November 2010, the U.S. government offered Israel a package of incentives in exchange for an agreement by the Israeli government to a 90-day freeze on settlement construction in the West Bank excluding East Jerusalem. The centerpiece of the deal was a
military aid package worth $3 billion, including delivery of 20 additional
F-35s, various missile and layered defense systems, and an explicit acceptance of the legitimacy of existing security needs and a commitment not to redefine them. In addition to security provisions, the proposed incentive package also included a U.S. promise to veto any U.N. Security Council resolution relating to the peace process during the agreed upon negotiating period and a guarantee that the U.S. would not ask Israel to extend the 90-day moratorium when it expired. The
Security Cabinet of Israel considered the offer. Former Ambassador
Dan Kurtzer, commenting on the deal said: "But now, the administration says it is prepared to pay off Israel to freeze only some of its settlement activity, and only temporarily. For the first time in memory, the United States is poised to reward Israel for its bad behavior." Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas rejected the U.S. freeze proposal, as it did not include
East Jerusalem, while Chief Negotiator
Saeb Erekat reiterated demands for unconditional recognition of the 1967 borders, and for withdrawal from all of East Jerusalem. On December 2, a Palestinian official announced that Washington had officially informed the PA that Israel had refused to agree to a new settlement freeze. Israeli Defense Minister
Ehud Barak tried to restart negotiations by imposing a
de facto settlement freeze by blocking building plans in the West Bank settlements.
Ariel Mayor Ron Nachman threatened to sue Barak. Israeli Prime Minister
Benjamin Netanyahu visited
Egypt and met with President
Hosni Mubarak. Netanyahu urged Mubarak to pressure Abbas into direct talks. According to Dr.
Mohammad Shtayyeh, a senior Palestinian negotiator who spoke at a conference hosted by the Brookings Institution's Doha Center, the Palestinian leadership used the cessation of direct talks to adopt a new strategy with the goal of declaring an independent state of Palestine. The initial step of this strategy was to ask the international community to recognize an independent Palestine along 1967 borders, to which the achieved some success in late 2010 and early 2011. This was met with fierce opposition from Israel, which claimed that early recognition was a violation of the Road Map. In January 2011, Israeli Foreign Minister
Avigdor Lieberman proposed an interim peace deal, in which a Palestinian state would be established initially on 50% of the West Bank, with final borders to be negotiated at a later date. The proposal was rejected by the Palestinians, with Chief Negotiator
Saeb Erekat claiming that Lieberman's plan represented Prime Minister Netanyahu's position as well, stating "the Israeli government is not headed towards peace, because it is not interested in peace, and this plan is proof of that". On January 16, 2011, Israel presented to accept a plan to build some 1400 more homes in
Gilo, a neighborhood in east Jerusalem, bringing condemnation from the Palestinians and Israeli left. In February 2011, Israel offered to ease economic and security restrictions against the Palestinians, which reportedly included allowing additional Arab construction in East Jerusalem, giving the Palestinian Authority security control in seven West Bank cities, and discussing a proposed Palestinian Authority gas field alongside an Israeli one off the coast of Gaza, on condition that the Palestinian Authority resume direct talks. The proposal was agreed to by Middle East Quartet chief
Tony Blair, and rejected by the Palestinians. Palestinian negotiator
Saeb Erekat called the Israeli proposal "just a trick and procrastination", stating that "what Netanyahu should do, if he wants to build confidence, is immediately stop settlement construction in the West Bank and East Jerusalem and recognize a Palestinian state on the territories occupied in 1967", called on Western nations to "stop dealing with Israel as if it is above the law", and "reach a historic decision that will recognize a Palestinian state within the 1967 borders and East Jerusalem as its capital", and urged the Quartet to force Israel to halt settlement construction "including in Jerusalem". The following day, Israel approved the construction of 13 additional Jewish homes in the East Jerusalem neighborhood of
Sheikh Jarrah. Shortly afterward, the Palestinian Authority announced an initiative to
United Nations to recognize
Hebron and
Bethlehem as world heritage sites rather than Jewish heritage sites to prevent "
Judaization". PA officials told local media that they hoped such recognition would stop the growth of Jewish settlements in the cities.
Turkey assisted the initiative by providing archived
Ottoman documents showing various sites in the two cities under Muslim rule. Researchers from
Lebanon and
Italy have also supported the initiative. On 12 February 2011, Chief Palestinian Negotiator
Saeb Erekat announced his resignation over the
Palestine Papers scandal, which purportedly showed that he had agreed to wide-ranging concessions to Israel on the issues of
Jerusalem,
refugees,
borders, and
Israeli security, while still insisting that the documents were false. On 18 February 2011, the United States vetoed a
United Nations Security Council Resolution condemning Israeli settlement activity. U.S. Ambassador to the U.N.
Susan Rice indicated in her remarks that the purpose of the U.S. veto was to demonstrate the Obama administration's intention that "the only way to reach that common goal [of peace] is through direct negotiations." This was met with mixed reactions by the Israeli and Palestinian leadership, as Netanyahu stated Israel's appreciation of the veto, while the Palestinian Authority condemned the U.S. for its "bias". In March 2011, Israeli Prime Minister
Benjamin Netanyahu reportedly considered a temporary peace deal that would see a Palestinian state established within provisional borders, with future borders negotiated at a later date, due to the Palestinians' refusal to negotiate. On March 3, the Palestinians rejected the idea, with official
Saleh Ra'fat saying that the PLO's position is unchangeable, and President Abbas calling it "unacceptable". Following the impasse in negotiations, the Palestinian Authority announced that unless a deal was reached by September 2011, it would unilaterally declare independence, seek recognition by the
United Nations, and apply for membership in the organization. Palestinian President
Mahmoud Abbas claimed that this new state would be ready to negotiate all the core issues, and that a key focus would be finding a "just solution" for Palestinian refugees in accordance with
United Nations General Assembly Resolution 194. The Palestinian Authority subsequently refused to reenter negotiations or reconsider its plans for a declaration of statehood until Israel froze all settlement construction and agreed to a solution based on the 1967 borders. PLO official
Yasser Abed Rabbo claimed that the new Palestinian state would not tolerate an Israeli military and civilian presence on its land, and would seek UN intervention. In April 2011,
Fatah and
Hamas signed a unity agreement, and announced plans to form a joint government. Israel responded by temporarily freezing the transfer of customs funds Israel collects for the Palestinian Authority, but released them following guarantees that the money would not go to Hamas. Israeli Prime Minister
Benjamin Netanyahu warned the Palestinian Authority that it would have to choose between peace with Israel or peace with Hamas. Abbas accepted a French offer to host peace talks by July 2011. A few days later, US Republican congresswoman Ileana Ros-Lehtinen of Florida, chairwoman of the House Foreign Affairs Committee, announced plans to introduce legislation that would withhold US contributions to any UN entity that recognizes a Palestinian state or upgrades the status of the PLO observer mission. She claimed that this was in order to "oppose efforts by the Palestinian leadership to evade a negotiated settlement with Israel." In May 2012, Abbas reiterated his readiness to engage with the Israelis if they propose "anything promising or positive". == Public reactions ==