Palestine’s Abbas calls for peace conference, US “ready to talk” Mideast peace

Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas agreed to resume peace talks with Israel yesterday, “calling for an international conference to be held by mid-2018 to kick-start the stalled peace process,” Reuters reports. Abbas remained steadfast in  his refusal for US mediation, which he had previously said would be “impossible” after Washington recognized Jerusalem as Israel’s capital. The US, however, said it was "ready to talk."