RAMALLAH, June 29, 2013 (WAFA) – Efforts by US Secretary of State John Kerry to bring the Palestinians and Israelis back to the negotiations table was highlighted on the front page of the three Palestinian Arabic dailies on Saturday.

The headline in al-Ayyam said that while Kerry is going to announce in Jordan on Saturday the results of his efforts, the position of Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu threatens to undermine Kerry’s efforts. It said that efforts are underway to hold three meetings between President Mahmoud Abbas and Netanyahu.

Al-Hayat al-Jadida said Kerry was intensifying his talks with Abbas and Netanyahu as news surface about meetings to release pre-Oslo prisoners.

Al-Quds, which did not make Kerry its main front page story, said in the story on this subject that Kerry was intensifying his efforts to break the ice in the peace process. It also talked about efforts to hold direct meetings between Abbas and Netanyahu.

The main front page story in al-Quds focused on the developments in Egypt and the protests that raged in many cities. It said two people were killed in the protests, one of them an American photojournalist.

Al-Ayyam and al-Hayat al-Jadida highlighted the story from Egypt as well and all three papers printed pictures of the protests on their front page.

The headline in al-Hayat al-Jadida on this subject said: “Egypt is burning  dead and injured and al-Azhar is warning from a civil war.”

Al-Quds quoted Hamas official Ghazi Hamad saying that Hamas held talks with Europeans, some of them officials and others are just parties or people close to decision makers, to lift the organization from the terrorist list.

It said in a different story also quoting Hamas official Ehab Ghussein saying that Israeli media parties want to resume their work in Gaza. He said these parties were in touch with Palestinian journalists in Gaza to cooperate with them. However, Ghussein said Hamas was still against this cooperation and will  punish anyone that provides the Israeli media with any news or video clippings.

The papers reported on the weekly Friday protests that rage in various parts of the West Bank against the Israeli settlements and construction of the segregation wall.

They also said seven people died on Friday in various accidents including traffic or drowning.

M.S.