Middle East Progress/Threats

JERUSALEM — Israeli and Palestinian negotiators have agreed to start drafting parts of a proposed peace accord, the chief Palestinian negotiator said, the first concrete move toward an agreement that has sputtered for months amid negotiations and tension. Ahmed Qureia, the veteran negotiator heading the Palestinian team, made it clear the decision did not necessarily reflect agreement on major issues, and he criticized Israel for not easing Palestinian movement in the West Bank. But it would be the first time since the negotiations resumed more than six months ago that any agreements in the peace process would be committed to paper.

As Israel's prime minister returned from discussions at the White House, his deputy said in a newspaper interview that "we will attack" Iran if Tehran continues its nuclear program, the Financial Times reports. As Israel's prime minister returned from discussions at the White House, his deputy said in a newspaper interview that "we will attack" Iran if Tehran continues its nuclear program, the Financial Times reports. It was the most explicit threat to date from a member of Prime Minister Ehud Olmert's cabinet. In 1981, Israeli warplanes destroyed Iraq's nuclear reactor. Mofaz is the transportation minister, Olmert's deputy and a former defense minister who leads strategic coordination talks with the U.S. State Department.