Palestinians Seek to Suspend Peace Talks

Palestinian leaders want to suspend peace talks with Israel, now just four weeks old, until Israel stops the building of settlements in the West Bank. A statement declaring Israel is responsible for the impasse was signed by 35 Palestinian officials, including the head committees of the Palestinian Liberation Organization and Fatah. White House special envoy George Mitchell has met several times with Benjamin Netanyahu and Mahmoud Abbas in recent days, but he made no progress. If the parties can’t reach a last-minute deal, the talks look D.O.A. Israel froze new settlement construction for 10 months before lifting the ban last month.