US PROPOSES MIXED ISRAELI-PALESTINIAN MILITARY PRESENCE IN JORDAN VALLEY

Tel Aviv, 3 Rabiul Awal 1435/5 January 2014 (MINA) – United States (US) through its Secretary of State, John Kerry has proposed a mixed Israeli-Palestinian military presence in Jordan Valley to ensure security there but Israel snubs it.

“Security must remain in our hands. Anyone who proposes a solution in the Jordan Valley by deploying an international force, Palestinian police or technological means does not understand the Middle East,” Israeli Intelligence Minister Yuval Steinitz said on Sunday.

Washington has proposed a mixed Israeli-Palestinian military presence in the region to ensure security there.

However, the Israeli regime says it wants a solo long-term military presence in the strategic valley, which is a main focus of the new round of talks between the Palestinian Authority and Tel Aviv.

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Israel occupied the Jordan Valley in 1967 and has been building settlements there since. The Jordanian government has said it is concerned Tel Aviv will annex the valley. Press tv reported quoted by Mi’raj Islamic News Agency (MINA).

On Saturday, US Secretary of State John Kerry said during a Middle East tour that progress had been made in the Palestinian-Israeli talks, but that many issues remained unresolved.

Kerry cited complications and enduring mistrust on both sides as the reasons for the slow process.

The US secretary of state has urged the Israeli officials to refrain from taking any steps that would disrupt the negotiations, such as the construction of new settlements or the demolition of Palestinian homes.

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Kerry arrived in Israel on Thursday and is scheduled to visit Jordan on Sunday. He is also expected to make an unscheduled trip to Saudi Arabia afterward.

The US Secretary of State John Kerry arrives in Ramallah on Friday for a meeting with Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas as part of a fresh round of Israeli-Palestinian talks aimed at reaching a viable peace deal.

The tête-à-tête will follow a six-hour meeting between Kerry and Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu in Jerusalem. Neither the US State Department nor the Israeli premier’s office has issued a statement on Friday’s meeting, the second between the two officials within 24 hours.

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Following the first meeting on Thursday, Kerry said that Israelis and Palestinians would have to make “tough choices” in coming weeks if they wanted to achieve peace.

“My plan is to work with both sides to narrow differences on a framework that will set guidelines for negotiations,” Kerry told a joint press conference with Netanyahu.

Kerry is due to return to Israel again to meet with Netanyahu before heading to Jordan on Sunday. (T/P04/E1)

Mi’raj Islamic News Agency (MINA)