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PM Ehud Olmert hosting U.S. Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice in Jerusalem on Sunday. (Reuters)
Last update - 22:13 15/10/2007
PM: Must Arab neighborhoods be defined as part of Jerusalem?
By Shahar Ilan, Barak Ravid and Avi Issacharoff, Haaretz Correspondents, and Haaretz Service
Tags: Israel, U.S. 

Prime Minister Ehud Olmert on Monday questioned whether Arab neighborhoods in East Jerusalem should be defined as part of the capital, hinting that Israel may be willing to divide the hotly disputed city.

"Was it necessary to also add the Shuafat refugee camp, Sawakra, Walaje and other villages and define them as part of Jerusalem?" Olmert asked, during a Knesset ceremony marking the sixth anniversary of former minister Rehavam Ze'evi's assassination. "With that, I must confess
it is possible to ask legitimate questions."
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In a joint news conference with Palestinian Authority Chairman Mahmoud Abbas, U.S. Secretary of State Condoleezza said Monday that U.S. President George W. Bush has decided to make ending the Israeli-Palestinian conflict one of the highest priorities of his administration.

Rice met Abbas to try to bridge his differences with Israel over the scope of a U.S.-led Mideast peace conference scheduled for next month in Annapolis, Maryland.

"We frankly have better things to do than invite people to Annapolis for a photo op," she said.

"Israelis and Palestinians," Rice observed, "are making their most serious effort in years to resolve the conflict."

"Frankly, it's time for the establishment of a Palestinian state, she added.

Lieberman: Summit at this time would be mistake
Minister for Strategic Affairs Avigdor Lieberman told Rice on Monday that going ahead with a Middle East summit set to take place next month would be a mistake at present.

"Another conference and another document without any direct impact on the daily lives of Israelis and Palestinians would be pointless," Lieberman said.

He added that "the most important thing is the security of the residents of Sderot and the Gaza envelope," a reference to the Negev town and other communities close to the Gaza Strip that have repeatedly come under rocket fire from Palestinians in the Gaza Strip.

Lieberman said that the Palestinian economy must receive attention and only can there be serious negotiations. He repeated his previous call for a territorial and population exchange, that would involve

Ultimately, we would not run from a broad military operation in the Gaza Strip, similar to Operation Defensive Shield," said Lieberman, referring to 2002 military operation in the West Bank, which followed a spate of devastating suicide bombings against Israeli civilian targets.

"Given the current political conditions, the government cannot afford to make controversial decisions on matters of such a sensitive nature."

Following Rice's meeting with senior ministers in the Israeli government, State Department officials said that the Annapolis peace summit scheduled for next month would likely be postponed.

American officials say the preparations for the summit are likely to demand more time and push back the scheduled date. Due to the extreme complexity of the issues, reaching an understanding between the two sides prior to the summit will require the U.S. to exert significant diplomatic efforts, State Department officials say.

Abbas said during the press conference that he hopes the U.S.-hosted conference will launch peace talks with a deadline for completion.

Abbas also said he has asked for U.S. help in halting Israeli settlement expansion and construction of the separation fence.

The PA chair expressed confidence that Israelis and Palestinians could reach a joint declaration of principles ahead of the conference. "No doubt that before we go to Washington. the document will be ready, he said. The negotiations should not be open-ended, but subject to a certain time period."

Sources in the Prime Minister's Office said Sunday that Rice has no intention of imposing on Israel "anything that will not be acceptable to it," during the negotiations with the Palestinians in preparation for the summit.

Rice met Sunday with Olmert. Several hours earlier, Olmert announced Sunday that Foreign Minister Tzipi Livni will head the Israeli negotiating team in talk with the Palestinians. The two sides are scheduled to hold another series of talks Monday.

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      1.   ofcourse,the concessions,as they are called are getting bigger, 02:46  |  lakshmi 15/10/07
      2.   This is news? 03:12  |  Steve 15/10/07
      3.   lakshmi #1 03:26  |  Bruce 15/10/07
      4.   The US is not fit to act as a broker / shame on the USA 03:37  |  Sam (UK) 15/10/07
      5.   #1 lakshmi 03:37  |  Lynn 15/10/07
      6.   Reply to 2, You are so right 04:09  |  Abe 15/10/07
      7.   Of course 04:20  |  ASA 15/10/07
      8.   #1 lakshmi, concessions 04:36  |  Alan 15/10/07
      9.   Rice cannot pressure Olmert 04:38  |  Tosefta 15/10/07
      10.   right 04:39  |  Space 15/10/07
      11.   Advice to Abbas 04:40  |  Tosefta 15/10/07
      12.   Nothing but Bush diversion 04:41  |  Ron Page 15/10/07
      13.   " Rice wont impose conditions" 04:45  |  Rabbi Yakov Lazaros 15/10/07
      14.   I remember Rabin and Peres saying Jerusalem is not negotiable 05:12  |  Terry 15/10/07
      15.   To Rabbi Yaakov Lazaros 05:16  |  Otto Rand 15/10/07
      16.   To ASA 05:17  |  Otto Rand 15/10/07
      17.   Tosefta, Bush doesn`t need the base anymore 05:20  |  Terry 15/10/07
      18.   To ASA 05:27  |  Otto Rand 15/10/07
      19.   Wow, what a shock! 05:29  |  peacelover 15/10/07
      20.   To Terry 05:30  |  Otto Rand 15/10/07
      21.   "the possibility of establishing a Palestinian state" 05:34  |  peacelover 15/10/07
      22.   Moral Bankruptcy 05:39  |  Doe 15/10/07
      23.   Barak Gave Them All They Are Going To Get In 2000 05:51  |  Eli 15/10/07
      24.   Concessions from Israel getting larger??? Is it really a question 06:01  |  Smadar 15/10/07
      25.   5# Lynn. Nightmare in the Horizon. 06:13  |  Akram Zekaria 15/10/07
      26.   RICE HAS ALREADY ANNOUNCED PRE CONDITIONS 06:21  |  H.Aughty 15/10/07
      27.   All Talk, Israel Stalling again as always 06:35  |  dissapointed america 15/10/07
      28.   New American Strategy 07:06  |  Natallie Durson 15/10/07
      29.   SHE CANT PRESSURE ISRAEL BECAUSE..... 07:08  |  NO PEACE W/OUT JERUS 15/10/07
      30.   Tosefta # 9 Your Threats Are Noted 07:17  |  Jeff Northridge 15/10/07
      31.   27# dissapointed american. 07:25  |  Akram Zekaria 15/10/07
      32.   Road Map should Peace Off 07:31  |  Joseph E . 15/10/07
      33.   Apartheid Israel! 07:31  |  Joe 15/10/07
      34.   #1 Lakshmi 07:41  |  Betarnik 15/10/07
      35.   #15 07:57  |  Jesus Josephus 15/10/07
      36.   Dissapointed American 08:08  |  Disappointed Speller 15/10/07
      37.   Rice will impose conditions, you bet! 08:16  |  Anton 15/10/07
      38.   #27 - has the PA met stage 1 of the road map requirements! 08:19  |  redmike 15/10/07
      39.   #29 - you quote the BBC ? 08:26  |  redmike 15/10/07
      40.   Only dealing with core issues ....... 08:40  |  Dagma 15/10/07
      41.   Where`s the declaration from Abbas that he will not attend? 09:07  |  Clickfool 15/10/07
      42.   For Joseph E # 29 09:17  |  Clickfool 15/10/07
      43.   IL must address core issues or change coalition partners 09:23  |  Ivar 15/10/07
      44.   redmike, BBC article spot-on, despite your prejuduces 09:39  |  Ivar 15/10/07
      45.   moving the goal posts every year for 90 years 09:44  |  victor hardman 15/10/07
      46.   another bout of empty PR exercises 09:46  |  www.kibush.co.il 15/10/07
      47.   Hope is the Mother of the Headline 09:49  |  Burkhardt 15/10/07
      48.   To Rabbi Yakov Lazaros 10:10  |  dovale 15/10/07
      49.   As long there is... 10:18  |  Anne 15/10/07
      50.   are the "Pals" willing to give up "armed struggle" forever? NOPE 10:20  |  Pavel 15/10/07
      51.   #1, Lakshmi 10:28  |  Hannah 15/10/07
      52.   ivar and total idiocy and ignorance combined! 10:31  |  victor hardman 15/10/07
      53.   What do you expect 10:37  |  David 15/10/07
      54.   Annapolis 10:39  |  Jim 15/10/07
      55.   Annapolis 10:39  |  Jim 15/10/07
      56.   #4 Sam(UK) 10:56  |  Jim 15/10/07
      57.   #6 Abe 11:09  |  Jim 15/10/07
      58.   Rice is a pudding, dense and starchy 11:39  |  Yaakov Sullivan 15/10/07
      59.   hopeless 11:39  |  timothy 15/10/07
      60.   who should pressure whom 11:45  |  Cipora Julianna Kohn 15/10/07
      61.   For Cack Fool: questions, questions 11:54  |  Star of David 15/10/07
      62.   the Saudis can help in more ways than one 11:59  |  Cipora Julianna Kohn 15/10/07
      63.   51Hannah,greetings!yes I heard about the UN pulling out of the 12:00  |  lakshmi 15/10/07
      64.   For Cack Fool again: on luck and guts 12:03  |  Star of David 15/10/07
      65.   Tossed Fetta: hero in his lunch hour 12:07  |  Star of David 15/10/07
      66.   5Lynn,alarmist scenario,3Bruce here it is:In 1988 the PLO made a 12:07  |  lakshmi 15/10/07
      67.   30Howdy jeff,in case you have not heard,the UN`s envoy John 12:13  |  lakshmi 15/10/07
      68.   #39 Clickfool - To Be Or Not To Be 12:14  |  Alan 15/10/07
      69.   Not enough Pressure all around