BREAKING NEWS

UN's Ban: Palestinians must unite for peace talks to restart

Palestinian factions must reconcile in order for peace negotiations to restart, UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon was quoted as saying Friday. Speaking at a Vienna press conference, the secretary-general said, "It will be crucially important that the Palestinian peoples are united among themselves and should be able to carry on these negotiations." Ban voiced support for the Saudi-backed Arab peace initiative, but added, "at the same time we also value ... bilateral negotiations between Israel and Palestinian authorities."