Palestinian President hopes Paris summit ends settlements

Published December 27, 2016

A Palestinian shepherd poses for a picture as he stands on the back of his donkey, near the Israeli settlement of Argaman, in the Jordan Valley, a strip of West Bank land along the border with Jordan, Monday, Dec. 26, 2016. (AP Photo/Oded Balilty) (The Associated Press)

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Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu holds a doughnut during the weekly cabinet meeting in Jerusalem, Sunday, Dec. 25, 2016. (Dan Balilty/Pool photo via AP) (The Associated Press)

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, second right, attends a weekly cabinet meeting in Jerusalem, Sunday, Dec. 25, 2016. (Dan Balilty/Pool photo via AP) (The Associated Press)

Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas hopes the upcoming Mideast conference in France will set a mechanism to end Israeli settlements in territory Palestinians claim for a state.

His public remarks were his first since the recent U.N. Security Council resolution that condemned settlements as a "flagrant violation" of international law. Abbas told a meeting of his Fatah party late Monday that the resolution, "paves the way for the international peace conference."

France hosts a conference on Jan. 15 where countries may endorse a framework for peace between Israel and the Palestinians.

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu opposes such activity, saying only direct negotiations will produce a solution. Netanyahu has called on Abbas to meet for talks, but Abbas has refused unless settlement construction ends.

https://www.foxnews.com/world/palestinian-president-hopes-paris-summit-ends-settlements