Netanyahu Accuses Palestinians of Violating Oslo Accord

GAZA (NNN-KUNA) -- Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has accused the Palestinians of breaching the 1993 Oslo peace accord by taking the path for international recognition of the independent Palestinian state.

Palestinians' pursuit of unilateral statehood goes against the 1993 Oslo Accords with Israel, Netanyahu said in a statement during closed-door discussions in his office on Monday, excerpts of which were made public on Tuesday.

"By boycotting negotiations and by going instead to the United Nations, they (the Palestinians) have reneged on a central tenet of Oslo," Netanyahu said. His statement was in reaction to the Palestinians' bid to win UN membership.

Although the US is expected to veto the membership request, the Palestinians have continued to pursue membership. They have submitted similar requests to a number of UN related bodies and international organisations. Last week, UNESCO recognised Palestine as its 195th member.

Netanyahu said that within the framework of the Oslo Accords, Israel pulled out of large sections of the West Bank. "It paid a territorial price, because according to Oslo, the Palestinians had made a commitment to solve all outstanding issues and disputes through direct negotiations," he added.

Israel, last week, took a number of punitive measures against the Palestinian Authority of Mahmoud Abbas for its pursuit of unilateral statehood. It temporarily suspended transfer of tax funds to the PA and authorised construction of 2,000 new homes in eastern Jerusalem and the West Bank. -- NNN-KUNA