Palestinians divided on Qatar’s minor land swaps proposal

Senior Palestinian negotiator Saeb Erekat said Tuesday that the Arab League’s latest proposal for minor land swaps for a Palestinian-Israeli peace represents the official Palestinian position: “If Israel accepts the two-state solution based on the 1967 borders, we will consider small agreed border adjustments,” Erekat said in response to US Secretary of State John Kerry’s push to relaunch the Middle East peace process at a meeting with senior Arab League ministers in Washington Monday. He was quickly challenged by a row of prominent Palestinian Authority figures in Ramallah. Hamas in the Gaza rejected the proposal out of hand.
Their dispute arose over Qatari Prime Minister Hamad bin Jassim, chairman of the Arab Peace Initiative follow-up committee, accepting President Obama’s proposals for a “comparable and mutual agreed minor swap of the land” between Israel and the Palestinians to reflect the realities of the burgeoning communities on the ground.