In Israel and the Occupied Territories, Palestinian Prime Minister Salam Fayyad has unveiled a plan that he says will build the institutions and infrastructure necessary to declare a provisional Palestinian state within the next two years. Fayyad said his government is seeking a state within the 1967 borders.

Palestinian Prime Minister Salam Fayyad: “We call on our people to unite behind this program and the government’s vision to transform it into a reality. This is the path to freedom. This is the path to the creation of the independent state of Palestine on the Palestinian territory occupied in 1967 with East Jerusalem as its capital. And yes, this can and must happen within the next two years.”

Fayyad’s announcement came as Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu met with British Prime Minister Gordon Brown at the start of a trip to Europe. Netanyahu dismissed one of Palestinians’ central demands: sovereignty over East Jerusalem.

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu: “I say Jerusalem is not a settlement. The settlement issue is outstanding. It has to be one of the issues resolved in the negotiations alongside with the Palestinian recognition of the Jewish state and effective demilitarization arrangements for any future peace agreement. But our position is that Jerusalem is the united capital of the Jewish people.”