Offering a positive note after two days of inconclusive Mideast peace negotiations, Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas said Thursday he sees no alternative to continuing the talks in search of a peace deal with Israel.
His comments came as Israel was coming under increasing pressure Thursday to extend its curb on Jewish settlement construction in the West Bank beyond the end of this month, and aides to Abbas suggested their might be movement toward a compromise on that issue.
Abbas had said previously that the talks could not survive if the Israeli building restrictions were lifted as planned.
“We all know there is no alternative to peace through negotiations, so we have no alternative other than to continue these efforts,†Abbas said Thursday, speaking through an interpreter during a welcoming ceremony for visiting U.S. Secretary of State Hillary Rodham Clinton.