Chief Palestinian negotiator calls to recognize Palestinian state

Saeb Erekat

The chief Palestinian Authority negotiator on Tuesday called for immediate international recognition of a Palestinian state to counter Israel's illegal plans for construction of new settlements. "Israeli unilateralism is a call for immediate international recognition of the Palestinian state," Saeb Erekat said in a statement on Tuesday.

He made the comments after Israel approved construction of more than 1,300 new housing units in the occupied East Jerusalem and Ariel.

Earlier, EU Foreign Policy Chief Catherine Ashton warned on Tuesday that the new units "constitute an obstacle to peace and threaten to make a two-state solution impossible."