Israeli PM urges Palestinian concessions in peace talks

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu on Sunday called for Palestinian concessions in peace talks with Israel, saying the negotiations are not frozen. "They're not frozen. We're talking," the hawkish leader said in a television interview on CNN's State of the Union program aired Sunday, amid reports that the talks had been on hold since the Palestinian negotiating team resigned on Nov. 5 in protest against continued Israeli building of settlers' homes on occupied lands. Chief Palestinian negotiator Saeb Erekat said Saturday that the Palestinians have not withdrawn from the negotiations restarted in late July following a hard push by the Obama administration. "But I think I'd like to see some movement on the Palestinian side," Netanyahu said. "Everybody talks about Israeli concessions. It's time to talk about Palestinian concessions, too, like recognizing the Jewish state." "You want us to recognize the Palestinian state for the Palestinian people," he explained. "How about recognizing the Jewish state for the Jewish people? " Washington and the two sides seek to achieve a final-status agreement by the end of April next year, and Erekat said the Palestinians remain committed to the time frame. U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry traveled to the region again early this month to try to revive the moribund peace process, as the Israelis and the Palestinians had traded blame on each other. Last week, Netanyahu called off plans to build over 20,000 new settlers' homes in the West Bank and East Jerusalem following broadsides by the U.S. and the Palestinians.