Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu threatened the Palestinians on Sunday with unilateral reprisals as the two sides prepared for last-ditch talks with a US envoy on salvaging teetering peace talks.
He said Israel would retaliate if the Palestinians proceed with applications to adhere to 15 international treaties.
"These will only make a peace agreement more distant," he said of the applications the Palestinians submitted on Tuesday. "Any unilateral moves they take will be answered by unilateral moves at our end."
Netanyahu’s remarks, made at the beginning of the weekly cabinet meeting, came as Israeli and Palestinian negotiators prepared to meet US envoy Martin Indyk in an attempt to save the peace process from collapse.
US Secretary of State John Kerry, the driving force behind the peace push, warned on Friday that there were "limits" to the time and energy Washington could devote to the talks process, as his appeals to both sides to step back from the brink fell on deaf ears.