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Source: http://jta.org/news/article/2009/02/19/1003130/mitchell-briefs-jewish-leaders-on-middle-east-plans
Mitchell Briefs Jewish Leaders on Mideast Plans
[JTA] In an on-the-record conference call Thursday, Middle East special envoy George Mitchell briefed Jewish leaders on his work thus far. Mitchell said settlements were "an important issue, but not the only issue," and that while Palestinian and other Arab leaders bring up settlements in every conversation, he will not pre-judge the issue. The envoy also noted that divisions among the Palestinians made dialogue more difficult. Mitchell said he was struck while reading the "Mitchell Report" on the region he wrote eight years ago how much has changed in that time. For instance, he said, Iran was not mentioned in that document, but the country was brought up in the "first sentence" of his initial meetings with every leader in the region.