WASHINGTON, Sept. 26 (UPI) -- Jordan's Queen Rania urged Israel and the Palestinians to keep talking as the moratorium on new Israeli housing in the disputed region expired.
Appearing on ABC's "This Week," Rania said the goal of the negotiations was to end an untenable and volatile situation that was fueling extremism throughout the Middle East.
"The Palestinian people and the Israeli people need to see change -- tangible change in their lives very soon," said Rania.
Rania said the most positive development would be that Israeli settlement expansion remained on hold after the moratorium expired. "What matters to me is what actually happens on the ground," she said. "If both sides are still talking and in the spirit of peace these settlements are not expanded upon, then I think both sides need to be flexible."
The queen also predicted that U.S. President Obama's flagging popularity and prestige in the Muslim world would "skyrocket" if the current talks produced a meaningful agreement between the longtime adversaries.
