'Abbas may ask US recognition for state in 67 borders'

PA may demand UN place PA under int'l mandate if talks fail, according to reports; Arab League to meet again to discuss "alternative options."

By JPOST.COM STAFF, ASSOCIATED PRESS
Abbas at Arab League 311 AP (photo credit: AP)
Abbas at Arab League 311 AP
(photo credit: AP)
Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas on Friday told leaders at the Arab League meeting in Libya that if peace talks remain stalled, he may ask the US to recognize a Palestinian state within the pre-1967 borders, Reuters reported.
Another option was to demand that the United Nations place the Palestinian territories under an international mandate, AFP reported.
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A Palestinian official quoted Abbas as saying, "What is the PA needed for if all these alternatives fail?" Ma'an reported on Saturday.
Earlier Friday, senior Abbas aide Nabil Abu Rdaineh said that an Arab League follow-up meeting would study unspecified "alternatives and ideas that were presented by the president [Abbas]." It is likely these were the alternatives he spoke of.
Foreign ministers from the 22-member Arab League agreed to give the United States another month to try to persuade Israel to renew the moratorium on West Bank settlement construction and keep Mideast peace talks from collapsing.
"We support the Palestinian president's position calling for a complete halt of all settlement activities in order to resume negotiation," the Arab League's deputy Ahmad Bin Helli said as he read a statement issued after the ministerial meeting.
But the ministers also said they would resume meetings in a month to study alternatives and decide on next steps, giving the United States some breathing room.