Israel’s Netanyahu postpones meeting with Obama’s Mideast envoy

September 24th, 2009 Mideast negotiators lauds Obama's initiativeUNITED NATIONS — The Quartet of Mideast peacemakers says President Barack Obama's meetings with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas represents an important step toward the resumption of peace talks. The Quartet — comprising the U.S., U.N., European Union and Russia — said it shared the sense of urgency expressed by Obama regarding the comprehensive resolution of the Arab-Israeli conflict.

September 24th, 2009 Israel hails US call for talks without conditionsJERUSALEM — Israel's prime minister welcomed Thursday President Barack Obama's call for the resumption of Mideast peace talks without preconditions despite Palestinian demands for a halt to new Jewish settlements in the West Bank before any new negotiations begin. In the past, Obama had said all Israeli building must stop on lands the Palestinians claim for a future state.

September 21st, 2009 Gibbs: 'No grand expectations' for Mideast talksWASHINGTON — The White House says it has "no grand expectations" for President Barack Obama's meeting Tuesday with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas. Obama will meet separately with each leader, then hold three-way talks while in New York City for meetings of the U.N.

September 18th, 2009 US envoy in new try to revive Mideast peace talksJERUSALEM — The U.S. Mideast envoy is pressing on with efforts to revive Mideast peace talks and extract Israeli concessions on settlements.

September 18th, 2009 Palestinian official: US envoy ends shuttleRAMALLAH, West Bank — A Palestinian official says the U.S. Mideast envoy has ended his latest shuttle without agreement on terms for renewed peace talks between Israel and the Palestinians.

September 16th, 2009 US envoy to press Israel yet again on settlementsJERUSALEM — Washington's special envoy to the Mideast on Wednesday wrapped up his second meeting this week with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu without reaching an agreement on curtailing Israeli settlement construction. U.S. official George Mitchell will sit down with Netanyahu for a third time on Friday, Netanyahu's office said in a statement.

September 15th, 2009 Mitchell to meet with Netanyahu, AbbasJERUSALEM — The Obama administration's special Mideast envoy will be huddling with the Israeli and Palestinian leaders, hoping to wring an agreement on Jewish West Bank settlements that would get moribund peace talks back on track. George Mitchell's first meeting on Tuesday will be with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu.

September 14th, 2009 Netanyahu: There will be no construction freezeJERUSALEM — Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu rebuffed U.S. demands for a total West Bank settlement freeze on Monday, digging in his heels before a crucial meeting with Washington's special Mideast envoy.

September 2nd, 2009 Obama envoy to resume talks in Mideast next weekWASHINGTON — The State Department says former Sen. George Mitchell, who is the Obama administration's special envoy for Mideast peace, will return to the region next week for another round of talks aimed at setting the stage for a resumption of Israeli-Palestinian peace negotiations.

August 26th, 2009 Mitchell, Netanyahu say progress made at talksWASHINGTON — The Obama administration's Mideast peace envoy and Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu say they have "made good progress" at talks aimed at restarting negotiations between Israel and the Palestinians. A joint statement from former Sen.

July 28th, 2009 Netanyahu, US envoy try to resolve settlement spatJERUSALEM — Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and U.S. Mideast peace envoy George Mitchell are trying to resolve a public dispute over Jewish settlements in the West Bank.

July 4th, 2009 Barak, Mitchell to meet again on settlementsJERUSALEM — An Israeli defense official says Defense Minister Ehud Barak is to hold a second round of talks with U.S. special Mideast peace envoy George Mitchell next week in an effort to resolve differences between the two sides on Jewish settlements in the West Bank.

June 25th, 2009 Netanyahu, French officials discuss peace effortsPARIS — Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu met France's prime minister and foreign minister Thursday, wrapping up a trip marked by differences with Washington and Paris over Jewish settlements. Netanyahu has been pressing his bid for a demilitarized Palestinian state in his meetings in Italy and Paris, and says the idea is gaining international ground.

June 24th, 2009 Israel: settlement issue prompted US meeting delayPARIS — Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has arrived in Paris for talks with French President Nicolas Sarkozy, as differences with the United States over settlements emerged as a key issue. An Israeli official says his government postponed a meeting between Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and Washington's top Mideast envoy because it wanted more time to iron out differences over settlements.

June 5th, 2009 Envoy to visit Mideast next weekWASHINGTON — The Obama administration's envoy for Mideast peace is leaving Sunday on a trip to the region, following President Barack Obama's call in Cairo for renewed efforts to restart peace talks. State Department spokesman P.J.