Abbas calls on Israel to re-impose settlement freeze

PARIS, Palestinian president Mahmud Abbas on Monday called on Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu to re-impose a settlement freeze, saying it was the only way for peace talks to succeed, his spokesman said.

President Abbas "wants to continue the negotiations but Netanyahu must take a decision to freeze the settlements in order to create an appropriate atmosphere to proceed with the peace talks," Abbas' spokesman Nabil Abu Rudeina said in the French capital.