US Secretary of State John Kerry (R) embraces Israeli President Shimon Peres in al-Quds (Jerusalem), in the occupied Palestinian territories on June 28, 2013.
US Secretary of State John Kerry has met with the Israeli president in al-Quds (Jerusalem) as part of his efforts to revive the so-called Middle East peace process.
On Friday, Kerry met with Shimon Peres who said creating the right environment for the two-state solution is necessary.
Å“I know it’s still difficult. There are many problems” in creating Å“the right environment to open the peace,” Peres said.
Kerry’s efforts to restart direct negotiations between Israel and Palestinians for a two-state solution have stalled over Tel Aviv’s settlement policy.
On Wednesday, the Israelis announced they had approved final plans to construct another 69 new illegal settler units in East al-Quds.
The settler homes will be built in Har Homa, a settlement neighborhood in the southern sector of East al-Quds which Israel occupied in 1967
The presence and continued expansion of Israeli settlements in the occupied Palestine has created a major obstacle for the efforts made to establish peace in the Middle East.
More than half a million Israelis live in over 120 illegal settlements built since Israelâ„¢s occupation of the Palestinian territories of the West Bank and East al-Quds in 1967.
The United Nations and most countries regard the Israeli settlements as illegal because the territories were captured by Israel in the war of 1967 and are hence subject to the Geneva Conventions, which forbid construction on occupied lands.
MN/MHB
Republished with permission from:: Press TV