Israel, Palestine talks start with intensity

Israeli and Palestinian leaders didn't hesitate to bring up provisions during their first direct talks in 20 months Wednesday, though many of their demands haven't been settled in decades.

After a day of weighty symbolism and lofty rhetoric at the White House, US Secretary of State Hillary Clinton sat down with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and President of the Palestinian National Authority Mahmud Abbas in an ornate room at the US State Department.

"The people of Israel, and I, as their prime minister, are prepared to walk this road and to go a long way - a long way in a short time - to achieve a genuine peace that will bring our people security, prosperity and good neighbors," Netanyahu said at the start of the three-hour brass-tacks negotiations.

He then urged the Palestinians to "recognize Israel as the nation state of the Jewish people," which is one of the three basic requirements for a peace deal he listed before the talks.

"A real peace must take into account the genuine security needs of Israel," he added.

The point is likely to prove sticky for Abbas who may fear it will undermine the right-of-return claims for those Palestinians who left or fled Israel when it was created in 1948.

Abbas appeared conciliatory on the security front.

"We consider security as essential and vital both for us and for you and we will not accept that anyone commits any act that would harm your security or ours," he said.

However, Abbas also stuck to his demands on settlements.

"We call on the Israeli government to move forward with its commitment to end all settlement activity and to completely lift the embargo over the Gaza Strip," he added.

Earlier Thursday, Netanyahu said that "a true peace, a lasting peace, (would) be achieved only with mutual and painful concessions from both sides."

Israeli and Palestinian forces, meanwhile, scoured the occupied West Bank for gunmen who killed four Jewish settlers Tuesday. The attack was claimed by Hamas, a staunch opponent to the talks.

Just hours before the peace talks in Washington, Hamas said its militants would keep on attacking Israelis.

Agencies