|
Austin, Texas/Occupied Jerusalem/Gaza City: Palestinian Prime Minister Salam Fayyad said on Friday a lasting peace accord with Israel was unlikely in 2008 despite renewed diplomatic efforts to resolve the long-running conflict.
He highlighted the lack of progress on the issue of Israeli colonies and military incursions into the West Bank as among the chief obstacles in the "road map" to peace and Palestinian statehood.
"I do not believe though that the final resolution ... will be complete in the course of this year. I don't think that is likely," Fayyad said.
Meanwhile, Israel on Friday said it cut by less than 1 per cent the amount of electrical power it supplies to the Hamas-controlled Gaza Strip as part of a campaign against fighters who fire cross-border rockets.
The Israeli military said Palestinian groups in the Gaza Strip fired 17 rockets towards Israel, without causing casualties.
A Bahraini delegation trapped in the Gaza Strip for almost a week appealed to be allowed home. "We came to Gaza on the Thursday before last to provide aid to the Palestinian people and since Tuesday we have been trying to return via the Salaheddin crossing," group leader MP Nasser Al Fadallah said.
|
