Why Continue Talks? ... Abbass Issued His Ultimate-um!

Abbas Breaks Confidentiality Pledge on Peace

By the extreme statements he made Monday in Cairo on the issues before Israel-Palestinian negotiations beginning in Washington Tuesday, Palestinian leader Mahmoud Abbas was in direct breach of the secrecy pledge the parties gave US Secretary John Kerry;

Abbas declared that not a single Israeli, soldier or civilian, must remain in the future Palestinian state.

"An international, multinational presence like in Sinai, Lebanon and Syria - we are with that," he said, adding "East Jerusalem is the capital of the state of Palestine ... if there were and must be some kind of small exchange (of land) equal in size and value, we are ready to discuss this - no more, no less.”

As for the Jordanian border, Abbas said he stood by an understanding reached with Ehud Olmert that NATO forces could deploy there "as a security guarantee to us and them."  On the West Bank and Jerusalem, he said, “We’ve already made the necessary concessions.”