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McClatchy Newspapers Despite Biden's plea, outlook shaky for Mideast peace talks
By Sheera Frenkel, McClatchy Newspapers 53 mins ago
TEL AVIV, Israel — Vice President Joe Biden left Jerusalem on Thursday with a final plea for Israeli and Palestinian leaders to begin peace talks without delay, but Mideast officials acknowledged that the atmosphere for talks was "shaky and uncertain."
It's been less than a week since U.S. special envoy George Mitchell arranged for the indirect talks after a year of efforts, and Biden traveled to the region to bolster support. His trip was undercut, however, by Israel's decision Tuesday to announce a plan for 1,600 Jewish settler homes in disputed East Jerusalem .
Chief Palestinian negotiator Saeb Erekat announced that he wouldn't proceed with the U.S. initiative unless Israel revoked its plan.
"We want to hear from Mitchell that Israel has canceled the decision to build housing units before we start the negotiations," Erekat said.
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