Palestinians hope for settlement curb if peace talks resume

A senior Palestinian official says he "hopes" Israel will halt settlement construction if US-led peace talks resume, but stopped short of making it a condition.

Saeb Erekat spoke today in Jordan after meeting with the foreign ministers of Jordan and Egypt, ahead of a Mideast trip next week by President Donald Trump.

Trump says he wants to broker an Israeli-Palestinian deal.

The Palestinians seek a state in the West Bank, Gaza Strip and east Jerusalem, lands Israel captured in 1967. Israel has built settlements on war-won lands, now home to 600,000 Israelis.

In recent years, the Palestinians refused to resume talks without a settlement curb.
 

Asked about linking negotiations to a settlement freeze, Erekat said "no one stands to lose more in the absence of peace and negotiations" than Palestinians.