Israel so far did not respond to international calls for stopping its settlement activities in the West Bank, Palestinian negotiator Yasser Abed Rabbo said on Monday.
"We are engaged in a political process (negotiations) and it is clear that Israel doesn't deal seriously with this process," Abed Rabbo told Voice of Palestine radio.
"The only serious thing Israel deals with is the settlement," but Israel, instead, "persists in the settlement process more despite the Palestinian and international calls for stopping it," said the Palestinian official.
For the Palestinians, Israel builds the settlements on what will be their future statehood, threatening the chances of success for the peace negotiations.
The U.S. administration helped reviving the Israeli-Palestinian peace process in November, hoping that the two sides will agree on a Palestinian statehood, living alongside Israel, before the end of President George W. Bush's term.
The Palestinian National Authority (PNA) is also concerned that criminal investigation with Israeli premier Ehud Olmert "may hinder the political process but will not block the settlement activities," Abed Rabbo said.
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