Reuters Reports Lack of Optimism on Part of Israeli and Palestinian Leaders

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Israel's vice premier, Haim Ramon and the Palestinian Authority's prime minister, Salam Fayyad have recently expressed their doubts that a final settlement will be reached this year, though a month ago in Ramallah President Bush said he thought it could happen. The sticking point is once again Jerusalem. Acknowledging the current weakness of his party, Ramon said, "Sooner or later, we will deal with Jerusalem and then we will have problems."