Israeli Cabinet Backs New Settlements

(AP)  Israeli Cabinet ministers lined up on Sunday behind Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu's plan to approve the construction of hundreds of new apartments in West Bank settlements, defiantly shrugging off a rare and harsh public rebuke from top ally Washington.

Israeli officials announced the new construction on Friday, while suggesting they might halt some building in the West Bank in exchange for overtures from the Arab world.

But while Israel portrayed its willingness to consider a building slowdown as a concession toward peacemaking, the proposed new construction flouted U.S. demands for a complete settlement freeze. And it drew swift denunciation from the Palestinians, who have conditioned the resumption of peace talks on a halt to all settlement activity.

Israel says a curtailment in construction would not apply to the new housing units, the 2,500 units currently under construction, or to east Jerusalem, which the Palestinians claim for the capital of a future state. Israel captured that sector of the city in 1967 and Netanyahu's hawkish coalition objects to any territorial concessions there.

If Netanyahu hoped to defuse a coalition crisis by linking a possible building slowdown to the approval of new building projects, then the tactic appeared to work, judging by ministers' comments ahead of the weekly cabinet meeting.

The head of the ultra-Orthodox Jewish Shas Party, Eli Yishai, spoke supportively of a "strategic pause" in construction. And Transportation Minister Yisrael Katz called Netanyahu's move "well-conceived," adding that no agreement had been reached with Washington on a construction freeze.

Netanyahu pointedly did not address the issue in prepared remarks before the weekly Cabinet meeting.

On Friday, White House press secretary Robert Gibbs said the U.S. regretted Israel's plans to approve additional settlement construction.

"As the president has said before, the United States does not accept the legitimacy of continued settlement expansion and we urge that it stop," Gibbs said in a statement.

In recent weeks, however, in the face of Netanyahu's staunch refusal to freeze construction, the U.S. administration has appeared to back down from its initial insistence that Israel halt all settlement expansion.

Washington's Mideast envoy, George Mitchell, is due in the region later this week to try to bridge differences.

Peace talks have been suspended since shortly before Netanyahu's election, but Israeli and Palestinian officials had both said that Netanyahu and Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas might meet for the first time at the U.N. General Assembly in New York later this month.

Abbas, however, hinted Friday that such a meeting would not take place while settlement construction continues, saying "the meeting is not scheduled yet."

On Sunday, Palestinian negotiator Saeb Erakat said the new construction plans "really undermines the efforts being exerted to revive the peace process"

About 300,000 Israelis live among about 2.5 million Palestinians in the West Bank. An additional 180,000 Israelis live in east Jerusalem neighborhoods built since Israel captured the area in the 1967 Mideast war.
By Associated Press Writer Amy Teibel

[pensacola8-2009]

How stupid can a country be? Why would anyone build Manhattan island styled development right on the frontier of their country's leading enemy?

I guess Israel aims to portray their neighbor's as a landfill and build Disney World right next to them to make a political statement. What a waste of resources!!

Something tells me Israel lives to fight and fights to live.

[hamiltoningrate]

What country celebrates baby killers ???

[hamiltoningrate]

Who killed Robert Kennedy ???

what kind of people or media could forget that it was Palest. agent SIRHAN SIRHAN.. Arafat's man in LA.
Once captured, Arafat tried to blackmail the USA by taking hostages, including our Ambassador. Nixon of course refused to let SIRHAN go, and ARAFAT personally tortured our man, by pulling and peeling off his skin, burning him and more........ What kind of people are these ???

[worldcitizen1]

The US taxpayer can not affort to continue to police the world. Cut off all aid to countries that do not need it on humanitarian needs, hunger or natural disasters, and start taking care of the US. With all the money wasted no the "war on terror" we could actually save many more lives by spending it on education and healthcare for all Americans. Israel has had 60 years to provide for themselves, cut off all military and financial aid. They might be more inclined to make peace with their neighbors.

[mrjustice1]

AGAIN AND AGAIN, DELUSIONAL RELIGIOUS MENTALITY PROHIBITS PROGRESS

When will 'the world', its leaders and its people, recognize the fact that religion is poison, and that religion is a dangerous and deadly fantasy?

[dcline5]

It's time to stop supporting Israeli theft of land with American billions infused into their budget every year. What neighbor would tolerate his neighbor stealing his back yard??? None!! There is no - repeat - NO excuse for underwriting Israeli behavior.

[quapawsix]

Here's a thought how bout we just cut off aid to everyone we are giving aid to pull our troupes back to the US and tell the rest of the world you are on your own. I as a taxed to death American am tired of supplying these dip wads they are not worth the effort it takes to fart.

[marvenetta]

Pres. Obama has proven once again that he has no spine. His cave-in to Israel will not only cause him to lose the confidence and respect of the Palestinians and Arabs for his handling of Israel, but he will also lose the respect of the world. Pres. Obama has allowed Netanyahu and the Israeli Jews to prove once again that they control the US, and the historical double standards and hypocrisy of the US in favor of Israel will continue.

Hopefully, Pres. Obama's betrayal of the Palestinians and Arabs will motivate them to seek alliances with Iran, and all to work on getting nuclear bombs. This is the only solution to their lack of defense against Israel and inability to bring peace in the Middle East.

[stopoil]

Has not owning all of Israel been worth 61 years of such suffering by the Palestinians? There never was a country to start with. All countries have made territorial compromises (except Australia). Arabs not willing to recognize Israel's right to exist is the reason Palestinians have suffered so much and do not have a state of their own.
Two people, two nations who have thousands of years of shared history to this land, must recognize each other?s legitimate right to this land and share this land in peace together.

[antoniof123]

I say get out and let them kill each other they are all a bunch of idiots they all have the same blood and yet they kill for their god.

Some god must be the devil.