That was the stark ultimatum Palestinian president Mahmoud Abbas gave Israel on the eve of the talks in Washington.

The warning came before yesterday's scheduled resumption of talks between Israel and the Palestinians after months of American mediation efforts.

Israelis themselves are divided over the settlements, including how many - if any - should be dismantled to enable the creation of a Palestinian state.

Under intense American pressure, Netanyahu declared a 10-month partial freeze in settlement construction to boost prospects for talks. But the negotiations are resuming just three weeks before the freeze expires.

Netanyahu has not pledged to renew it, facing stiff opposition from hard-line coalition partners in his government.

But Army Radio reported on Monday that 57 settlements are to begin building just one day after the freeze ends.

The settlement construction moratorium will expire at midnight on September 26 - unless the full cabinet decides to extend it - and the 57 settlements reportedly already have all the necessary permits to begin construction the following day.

When Foreign Minister Avigdor Lieberman was quizzed on Israel Radio about extending the moratorium so as not to derail the peace talks, he talked about the need to continue plans to develop 1,600 units in Jerusalem.

"Presently there are 1,000 housing units on the table in Ramot, another 600 housing units in neighbourhoods like Gilo, east Talpiot, Har Homa and Pisgat Ze'ev," he replied.

"Does someone expect that we will continue to freeze 1,600 housing units that went through all the [bureaucratic] procedures?"

But Abbas said on TV this week: "The Israeli government holds full responsibility for the failure and the collapse of these negotiations if it continues settlement expansion in all the occupied Palestinian territories". This was a clear reference to east Jerusalem.

Abbas is facing internal opposition from Palestinian hardliners, especially Hamas, for agreeing to return to the negotiating table.

Hamas, which rules Gaza and has a significant presence in the West Bank, rejects any contact with Israel. Other Palestinians criticise Abbas for not securing Israeli concessions in advance of the talks.

The rival Palestinian governments in the West Bank and Gaza Strip have clamped down harder on opponents and critics in recent months - deepening a nasty split that could prevent Palestinian statehood even if peace talks with succeed against long odds.

New reports by Palestinian rights groups highlight a surprising symmetry in the abuse that the US-backed government of Abbas in the West Bank and Iranian-supported rivals Hamas in Gaza inflict on each other.

Both governments carry out arbitrary arrests, ban rivals from travel, exclude them from civil service jobs and suppress opposition media, the rights groups say.

Torture in both West Bank and Gaza police stations includes beatings and tying up detainees in painful positions.

Hamas and Fatah have harassed each other ever since Hamas seized Gaza in 2007. However, the crackdowns have become more sweeping in recent months as each aims to strengthen its grip on its respective territory.

Just last week, security agents in the West Bank broke up a meeting of independents opposed to Abbas' decision to resume peace talks with Israel, despite government claims that it only targets militants who pose a security threat.

In Gaza, Hamas is pushing legislation that is seen as an attempt to take over and silence the respected Independent Palestinian Commission for Human Rights.

"In both the West Bank and Gaza, we are going towards a regime in which the security forces intervene in everything," said Shahwan Jabareen, of the Palestinian human rights group Al-Haq.