JERUSALEM (AP) - U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry headed to Israel and the Palestinian territories on Tuesday, hoping to breathe life into peace talks that have quickly run into trouble.
Three months after the U.S.-brokered talks were launched, there have been no visible signs of progress, and both sides have reverted to a familiar pattern of finger pointing. With the talks set to end in April, the deadlock is raising speculation that the U.S. may need to step up its involvement and present its own blueprint for peace early next year, or perhaps lower expectations and pursue a limited, interim agreement.
Underscoring the challenge ahead, a Palestinian official said that a secret negotiating session held Tuesday broke down in an acrimonious dispute over Israeli settlement construction.
Upon his arrival, Kerry said he had come "without any illusions about the difficulties" but remained committed to the goal of forging a final agreement.
After months of cajoling, Kerry persuaded Israel and the Palestinians to reopen peace talks in late July after a nearly five-year break. The sides have committed to hold nine months of talks in hopes of reaching a peace deal that would end decades of conflict.
The parties have largely honored Kerry's request to keep the content of the negotiations secret. But officials on both sides have acknowledged that no progress has been made, though they say that the talks have addressed all key issues at the core of the dispute. These include defining the borders of a future Palestine, and addressing Israeli security demands.
The Palestinians want to establish an independent state in the West Bank, east Jerusalem and Gaza Strip, territories captured by Israel in the 1967 Mideast war. They say they're willing to adjust those borders to allow Israel to keep some West Bank settlements as part of a "land swap."
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu opposes a withdrawal to Israel's pre-1967 lines, saying such borders would be indefensible.
He has also demanded that the Palestinians recognize Israel as the Jewish homeland, a condition they reject on the grounds that it would harm the rights of Israel's Arab minority and Palestinian refugees who claim lost properties inside what is now Israel. Netanyahu also rejects shared control of east Jerusalem, home to key religious sites and the Palestinians' hoped-for capital.
For years, the Palestinians refused to sit down with Netanyahu while he continued to expand Jewish settlements in the West Bank and east Jerusalem. The Palestinians say continued expansion of the settlements, now home to more than 500,000 Israelis, is a sign of bad faith.
Under heavy U.S. pressure, the Palestinians reluctantly agreed to drop their demand for a settlement freeze in return for Israeli pledges to release about 100 long-serving Palestinian prisoners, and vague assurances that any settlement construction would be restrained.
The U.S.-brokered formula has been put to the test in recent days. Israel released a second batch of prisoners, all of whom had been convicted of murdering Israelis, setting off a painful debate over the merits of such a move. Joyful Palestinian celebrations welcoming the prisoners home as heroes added to the Israeli public's anger.
Netanyahu responded to the prisoner release by announcing plans to build thousands of homes in settlements, angering the Palestinians.
A Palestinian official said the outrage over the settlement plans boiled over at a secret negotiating session with the Israelis in Jerusalem. The official said the meeting, held at Kerry's request, "exploded" over the settlement issue, and that the talks were abruptly halted. Abbas was expected to raise the matter with Kerry at a meeting in the West Bank on Wednesday.