Prime Minister Binyamin Netanyahu will meet with U.S. mideast envoy George Mitchell on Thursday. Netanyahu is expected to offer a series of Israeli “gestures,” further concessions, to the Palestinian Authority. Among the concessions expected to be offered will be surrendering more cities to PA civilian and security control, releasing of terrorists, removal of checkpoints, and a permit for the paving of a road between Ramallah and a new PA city being built.
In a speech in Tel Aviv this week, PA negotiator Saeb Erekat said that when Ehud Olmert had been prime minister, a nearly complete deal had been worked out, including Israeli withdrawal from nearly 95% of Judea and Samaria.