Israeli official says government won't accept Palestinian state in '67 lines

JERUSALEM (AP) – A senior Israeli official on Sunday said that the ruling Likud Party will not accept a Palestinian state with the borders favored by the Palestinians and the international community, a new hurdle to U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry's effort to restart peace talks in his latest visit to the region.

Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu moved to distance himself from the comments by his deputy defense minister, Danny Danon.

In a TV interview, Danon said "there is certainly no majority" in the Likud for establishing a Palestinian state based on Israel's borders before the 1967 Mideast war.

The Palestinians seek an independent state in the West Bank, east Jerusalem and the Gaza Strip, areas captured by Israel in 1967. The Palestinians say final borders between Israel and a future Palestine must be based on the 1967 lines. Israeli hard-liners oppose a broad withdrawal from the West Bank on both security and religious grounds.

"A Palestinian state on the 1967 lines is something dangerous for Israel, and therefore I oppose that idea," Danon told Channel 2 TV. He said it was possible that the broader coalition government, which includes other hard-line parties, also opposes a return to the 1967 lines.

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