JERUSALEM (JTA) — Palestinian groups expressed disappointment in the outcome of talks between Barack Obama and Benjamin Netanyahu.
The president of the United States and the prime minister of Israel met Monday in Washington.
Palestinian negotiator Saeb Erekat told the Washington Post that the meeting did not bode well for future negotiations since Netanyahu did not talk about the establishment of a Palestinian state or the halting of settlement construction.
"There is a difference between being a tough negotiator and a non-negotiator," Erekat said. "What I heard today was a non-negotiator."
"Obama’s statements and messages of hope are meant to mislead global public opinion regarding the continued existence and conduct of the racist and extremist Zionist entity," Hamas spokesman Fawzi Barhoum said Tuesday, according to Ynet. "What we have seen is a continued development of the Zionist-American relationship at the expense of our people and our rights."
Barhoum also called on the Palestinian Authority not to return to the negotiating table with Israel.
