Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu says Israel hopes to begin peace negotiations with the Palestinians next week, during a visit by U.S. envoy George Mitchell.

Mr. Netanyahu spoke to his Cabinet a day after the Arab League endorsed indirect peace talks for a period of four months.

The prime minister said direct talks are necessary to reach a peace agreement, but indirect talks are an acceptable way to restart the diplomatic process.

Peace talks broke down more than a year ago, and the Palestinians have refused to return to the negotiating table until Israel freezes all settlement construction in the West Bank and East Jerusalem. The Palestinians rejected Israel's offer of a partial freeze.

But now, the American proposal of indirect talks mediated by the United States has provided a way out of the impasse.

Palestinian officials say the first order of business during the four-month talks is charting the borders of a future Palestinian state. An agreement on borders could lead to direct talks on the thorniest issues of the conflict, including the status of Jerusalem and Palestinian refugees.

impasse: a difficult situation in which no progress can be made because the people involved cannot agree what to do deadlock 僵局；絕境

Related stories:

Palestinian protests mount over Israel's decision on West Bank holy sites

Settlers protest West Bank construction freeze

Palestinians say Israeli move could kill peace process

Palestinians accuse US of damaging peace process

（來源：VOA 編輯：陳丹妮）