South Africa's deputy foreign affairs minister said Monday after talks with his Palestinian counterpart that gains made in the Middle East peace process were being negated by an expansion of Jewish settlements in the West Bank, dpa reported. Aziz Pahad and visiting Palestinian official Abdullah Abdullah met at a diplomatic guest house in Pretoria in what South Africa has described as part of its engagement with both the Israeli and Palestinian sides, dpa reported. "We hope that reason will prevail and all new settlements will be stopped," Pahad told reporters. Israel's withdrawal from the Gaza Strip is important and has to be done in co-operation with the Palestinian Authority and in line with the United Nations-sanctioned roadmap for peace, he noted. Recent peace talks in Egypt had yielded hope but the positive aspects "get negated if at the same time settlements in the West Bank are increased," he warned. Abdullah meanwhile urged a "total and complete" withdrawal on the part of Israel, saying the conflict could only be ended by the creation of a viable and sovereign Palestinian state alongside Israel. --More 2312 Local Time 2012 GMT
