Egypt Says Israel Blocks Peace Deal
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ISTANBUL, Turkey — Egypt, frustrated by the lack of a final Israeli agreement to attend a peace conference, accused the Jewish state Sunday of seeking to block a deal by continuing to settle Jews in the occupied territories.
Egyptian Foreign Minister Amir Moussa told ministers and delegates from the 45-nation Organization of the Islamic Conference in Istanbul that Israel should not attach conditions to its acceptance of U.S.-proposed peace talks.
“The biggest stumbling block on the road to peace today is the settlement policy adopted by Israel in occupied Palestinian and Arab lands, including Jerusalem,” Moussa said. He also attacked what he called Israel’s “escalation of acts of repression against the Palestinians . . . and its blocking of efforts for a just and peaceful solution to the Palestinian issue. . . .”
In an apparent reference to Syria, Moussa welcomed Arab acceptance of a peace conference under the auspices of the United States and the Soviet Union. Israel wants to approve Palestinian negotiators before finally agreeing to attend the conference.
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