Mahmoud Abbas. Photo: World Economic Forum.

JNS.org – The Palestinian Authority (PA) began the process of joining 15 international conventions in response to Israel not proceeding with the fourth round of the release of Palestinian terrorist prisoners.

“I presented the letters signed by [PA President Mahmoud] Abbas this morning to U.N. special envoy Robert Serry, as well as to the representatives of the Netherlands and Switzerland,” Palestinian Foreign Affairs Minister Riyad al-Maliki said, Ma’an News Agencyreported.

As part of the agreement to enter peace talks that it signed last July, the PA promised to postpone accession to international bodies.

“Since Israel failed to release the last group of prisoners, the State of Palestine is no longer obliged to postpone its rights to accede to multilateral treaties and conventions,” the Palestine Liberation Organization said in a statement on Wednesday.

Yet al-Maliki said the Palestinians remain committed to the current talks with Israel.

“This action does not detract from the importance of negotiations. We are still committed to these talks,” he said.

The list of 15 international conventions that the Palestinians applied to includes the 1949 Geneva Conventions, conventions on the rights of children and people with disabilities, and conventions against torture and gender discrimination. There are no U.N. bodies on the list.