US Secretary of State John Kerry speaks to reporters with Turkish Foreign Minister Ahmet Davutoglu. Photo: REUTERS/Kevin Lamarque
RAMALLAH, West Bank - Palestinian protesters on Friday condemned the latest efforts by US Secretary of State John Kerry to advance peace talks with Israel, using chants evoking the Arab uprisings and telling him to go home.
Hours before Kerry was due to meet Palestinian Authority President Mahmoud Abbas, a raucous crowd of several hundred took to the streets of Ramallah, the West Bank's de facto capital, chanting "Kerry, you coward, there's no place for you in Palestine!"
Separately, an official close to Abbas dismissed Kerry's drive for a "framework agreement" as biased toward Israel.
Kerry has said such an accord would narrow gaps between the sides and pave the way for a final deal when the nine-month period allotted the US-backed talks expires on April 29.
Palestinian and Israeli officials have publicly differed on the future status of the West Bank's border with Jordan, where Israelis want a permanent security presence but Palestinians want a full withdrawal of Israeli soldiers and Jewish settlers.
Israel said last week it planned to build another 1,400 homes in settlements in the occupied West Bank.
Kerry has told reporters that the agreement, besides borders and security, would aim to address all the conflict's key issues such as refugees and Jerusalem.
The US top diplomat held five hours of talks with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu on Thursday and saw him again on Friday. He was due to see Abbas later in the day.
Around three hundred activists with the left-wing Democratic Front for the Liberation of Palestine party rallied in downtown Ramallah hours before Kerry's scheduled arrival.
"The people want the fall of the framework!" they chanted, evoking the chants heard in protests throughout the Middle East in 2011. "It's clear, Kerry, we don't want to see you! The Americans are the enemy of our people!" they added.
Dozens of riot policemen and plainclothes security forces prevented their march from reaching Ramallah's presidential compound, where Abbas was expected to receive Kerry
Hours before Kerry was due to meet Palestinian Authority President Mahmoud Abbas, a raucous crowd of several hundred took to the streets of Ramallah, the West Bank's de facto capital, chanting "Kerry, you coward, there's no place for you in Palestine!"
Separately, an official close to Abbas dismissed Kerry's drive for a "framework agreement" as biased toward Israel.
Kerry has said such an accord would narrow gaps between the sides and pave the way for a final deal when the nine-month period allotted the US-backed talks expires on April 29.
Palestinian and Israeli officials have publicly differed on the future status of the West Bank's border with Jordan, where Israelis want a permanent security presence but Palestinians want a full withdrawal of Israeli soldiers and Jewish settlers.
Israel said last week it planned to build another 1,400 homes in settlements in the occupied West Bank.
Kerry has told reporters that the agreement, besides borders and security, would aim to address all the conflict's key issues such as refugees and Jerusalem.
The US top diplomat held five hours of talks with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu on Thursday and saw him again on Friday. He was due to see Abbas later in the day.
Around three hundred activists with the left-wing Democratic Front for the Liberation of Palestine party rallied in downtown Ramallah hours before Kerry's scheduled arrival.
"The people want the fall of the framework!" they chanted, evoking the chants heard in protests throughout the Middle East in 2011. "It's clear, Kerry, we don't want to see you! The Americans are the enemy of our people!" they added.
Dozens of riot policemen and plainclothes security forces prevented their march from reaching Ramallah's presidential compound, where Abbas was expected to receive Kerry
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