TEL AVIV — Two top Israeli officials are at odds over the chances for peace with the current Palestinian leadership, according to Agence France Presse. Israeli Defense Minister Shaul Mofaz has expressed serious doubts that "one day we can reach a peace accord with the present leadership," but Deputy Prime Minister Shimon Perez has criticized that position.

"We must wait for the next generation," Mofaz told the Yediot Aharonot daily. "I don't think that a Palestinian state will see the light of day in the coming years."

But Peres, who leads the Labour Party, disagrees. "We can't cross out an entire generation," he said. "We must think about peace with the current generation and not the future generation."