Palestinian negotiator Saeb Erekat. Photo: wiki commons.

Writing in the Dubai based GulfNews.com. Nasouh Nazzal says Palestinian Authority negotiators have rejected Israeli requests to extend the deadline for peace negotiations set by the “Quartet.”

Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has sought to extend the deadline for peace negotiations from the January 26 date to April 3, 90 days from the initial face to face meeting in Amman (January 3).

“Time extension is useless. Israel doesn’t appear to be serious, so time extension will not add any value to the status quo,” Jamal Muhaisan, a member of the Fatah Central Committee, told Gulf News. “We are sticking to the 26 deadline and once it passes we will confer with our Arab brothers on the next course of action.”

In Washington, DC, President Barack Obama met with Abdullah II of Jordan. Following talks between the two leaders, the President thanked the King for “encouraging peace and prosperity” in the Middle East, saying that “the Jordanians have taken great leadership on this issue, and we very much appreciate their direction.”