Israeli official says Paris peace conference will ‘fail’

Instead, the meeting concluded with a closing communique welcoming the “prospects” of such a conference later this year, without elaborating. Israel has fiercely opposed it; the US hasn’t been supportive, either.

“In the end it will come down to the Israelis and Palestinians – and only them – to make the courageous choice of peace”, Hollande said.

As Israel’s largest trading partner and the Palestinians’ biggest donor, the European Union can offer “incentives” to encourage dialogue, the bloc’s foreign policy chief, Federica Mogherini, said.

Netanyahu has been against the French approach and he stated ahead of the Paris conference that “the path to peace does not pass though global committees that are trying to coerce an agreement, radicalize Palestinian demands and in doing so, distance peace”. However, given that the Israeli government has rejected the meeting and the USA has refused to table specific proposals, many believe that the talks are doomed to fail.

Palestinian negotiators, for their part, insist that Israeli settlement building must stop before a comprehensive peace agreement can be reached.

Violence since October has killed 206 Palestinians, 28 Israelis, two Americans, an Eritrean and a Sudanese national.

Most of the Palestinians killed were carrying out knife, gun or car-ramming attacks, Israeli authorities say.

With US efforts to broker a deal on a Palestinian state on Israel-occupied land in cold storage for two years, France has lobbied the key players in the peace process to attend the Paris conference. That time never arrived.

Asked about a conference, Kerry told reporters: “I have no idea yet”. But he emphasized that right now, “we need to find some immediate kinds of steps on the ground that will make a difference”.

“We’re just starting, let’s get into the conversations”, he said. Earlier, Hollande said these include de-escalation measures, security arrangements, bilateral and regional cooperation, as well as identifying “the economic dividends of peace”.

The statement called for “fully ending the Israeli occupation that began in 1967 and resolving all permanent status issues through direct negotiations”, and noted that “the status quo is not sustainable”.

Eitan Ben-David, head of the Counter-Terrorism Bureau in Netanyahu’s office, told the bi-monthly journal ‘Israel Defense’that “more than a few dozen, but not more than 100” Israeli Arabs had joined Islamic State’s ranks – and some might return. Israel, which has occupied East Jerusalem since the 1967 Middle East war, regards the whole of the city as its indivisible capital, though this is not recognised by the worldwide community. The Palestinians have been pushing for a multinational mediator for future talks to replace the US, which is seen by the Palestinians and Europeans as too close to Israel. The Geneva Initiative, elaborated with members of Israeli and Palestinian civil society with Swiss support, is an example of a detailed proposal.

Still, Foreign Minister Riad Malki expressed disappointment.

“Violence is growing and hope is fading – that’s why we want to try and revive the peace process”.

Its initial focus is to reaffirm existing global texts and resolutions that are based on achieving a Palestinian State in the West Bank and Gaza Strip co-existing with Israel, an outcome some say is becoming unrealistic.