Israel and the Palestinian Authority will resume early next month direct peace negotiations for the first time in 20 months, reports claimed Friday. The Sept. 2 meeting will be held in Washington and will include Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, Palestinian Authority chief Mahmoud Abbas and U.S. President Barack Obama, Reuters reported.
The sides have agreed to place a one-year limit on the talks to avoid open-ended negotiations, the New York Times reported.
On Thursday, Philip Crowley, the spokesman for the U.S. State Department, told reporters the U.S. was "very, very close to a decision by the parties to enter into direct negotiations."
