BBC News with Fiona Macdonald.
Palestinian representatives have accused Israel of trying to sabotage next week's peace talks after it had announced another expansion of its settlement program on occupied territories. A senior leader told the BBC that Israel was deliberately trying to scupper any chance of peace. But there have been no Palestinian threats of pulling out of the talks. In an interview with the BBC, the Israeli government’s spokesman Mark Regev dismissed at the criticism.
“The truth is that in every peace plan even those put on the table by the international community, whether you’re talking about the Geneva Initiative, or the Clinton parameters, all those different international ideas to solve the solution, in all of them that the Jewish neighbours of Jerusalem and the large blocks remain part of Israel in final status at peace. Now, I'd ask you once again, If we are building in areas that in any way going to stay part of Israel, why is it such a problem?”
The peace talks are due to resume in three days time in Jerusalem. And Israel has approved a list of the first group of Palestinian prisoners to be released ahead of those talks. The government said 26 prisoners would be released including 14 from Gaza and 12 from the West Bank. Their names will be published overnight. The Israeli cabinet has approved the release of more than 100 Palestinian prisoners over the coming months as part of efforts to restart the peace talks.