Palestinian Authority President Mahmoud Abbas will propose a timetable for talks with Israel during a meeting with Arab League foreign ministers slated for September 7.

Palestinian supreme judge Mahmoud al-Habbash said Abbas wants to garner support from Arab countries for nine months of talks with Israel.

The plan…includes three months of negotiations dedicated to agreeing on borders, with the remaining six months focused on refugees, Jerusalem, settlements, security and water, al-Habbash said.

Israel would be expected to freeze illegal settlement construction during the duration of the talks and release the last group of pre-Oslo prisoners.

There has been no formal response from Israel. However, in off-record conversations, senior officials in Jerusalem did not rule out re-engaging with Abbas and opening a new chapter with Arab League members. One official said September 3 peace overtures will be most welcome, but that the Palestinians must realize they cannot push forward a peace agenda if they continue supporting Hamas, which is internationally recognized as a terror organization.

A representative of the Palestinian political movement Fatah on Wednesday said the group has invited Hamas to a meeting to discuss the implementation of the national reconciliation agreement and were still waiting for a response.

Senior Gaza-based Fatah leader Faisal Abu Shahla told Ma’an that Fatah had already formed a delegation based on central committee members and had asked Hamas to form a delegation “authorized to take decisions” in order to take part in a meeting outside of Palestine.

Palestinian negotiators met U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry on September 3 in Washington. Little information emerged from the talks, but it appears the parties will meet again during the opening of the United Nations General Assembly towards the end of this month.

The Palestinians are said to be looking for an end to the Israeli presence in the West Bank within three years.

[Photo: U.S. State Department / flickr]