PNA: Not officially informed about settlement freeze

The Palestinian National Authority (PNA) said Tuesday that it had not been officially informed about Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu's order to freeze settlement construction in West Bank. "We have not received anything new from Israel regarding this and we are seeking confirmation," said Nemer Hammad, an aide to President Mahmoud Abbas. He reiterated the Palestinian stance that Israel must stop all kinds of settlement activities and recognize the 1967 borders as the basis for the resumption of peace talks. Israeli Army Radio reported Tuesday that Netanyahu informed Housing Minister Uri Ariel of the decision to give a chance to U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry who is working on reviving the peace negotiations. Peace negotiations between Israel and the PNA came to a halt in 2010 over Israel's settlement construction in the West Bank. Following UN's acceptance of the PNA as a non-member observer state in last November, Netanyahu ordered the construction of tens of thousands of housing units in the West Bank settlements as well as the E1 territorial stretch joining East Jerusalem with the West Bank territories to the ire of the international community.