国际英语新闻：AL denies Israeli-Palestinian proximity talks stopped

CAIRO, July 11 (Xinhua) -- The Arab League (AL) denied Sunday that the Israeli-Palestinian proximity talks have stopped, the official MENA news agency reported.

Hisham Youssef, chief of the cabinet for AL secretary general, said in statements that negotiations are going in the right path, denying a report saying the talks have stopped, said MENA.

The London-based pan-Arab newspaper Al-Hayyat reported Sunday that U.S. Middle East envoy George Mitchell had stopped the proximity talks between the Israelis and the Palestinians two months after they started and is pressuring the two sides to shift to face-to-face negotiations.

Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas and Mitchell will meet soon to discuss the outcome of last week's talks between U.S. President Barack Obama and Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, Youssef added.

AL Secretary General Amr Moussa also told media on Sunday that he has no knowledge about any preparation for a shift to direct negotiations between the Palestinians and Israel.

AL in May approved a U.S. offer to launch indirect negotiations between Israel and the Palestinians to revive the peace process that had stalled since Israel launched a three-week offensive in Gaza in late 2008 and early 2009.

The Palestinians said they would go for four months in the talks, hoping to reach an agreement on border and security issues.

Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas said on Saturday that moving to direct talks without making a progress in the proximity talks will be "absurd and useless."

The Arab Peace Initiative Committee will convene on July 29 to discuss the latest developments in the indirect talks, said Hisham Youssef, adding that Abbas will attend the meeting to post the committee on the outcome of the efforts exerted over the past period.

Youssef said the AL will turn to the UN Security Council if peace talks between Israel and the Palestinians do not bear fruit by September.