The Palestinian Authority has refused a recent Israeli proposal to restart peace talks without a complete freeze of settlement activity, a Palestinian official told AFP on Sunday.
"Israel offered through a mediator from the American administration to resume negotiations" but the PA declined, the official said on condition of anonymity. "The reason for the refusal is that the Palestinian Authority demands first of all a stop to settlements in the West Bank and east Jerusalem," he said.
Asked to comment on the report, Israeli government spokesman Mark Regev said he was not aware of such an offer and reaffirmed the oft-repeated position of Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu that the Jewish state was ready for an immediate resumption of peace talks without preconditions. The Palestinian official said that as part of the proposal, Israel offered to free 400 Palestinian prisoners, extend Palestinian control over parts of the occupied West Bank and remove more checkpoints in the territory.