Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu reportedly told top settler leaders that there is a de facto freeze on all new settlement construction in the occupied West Bank, based on “current pressures” from the US. The settlers were demanding massive new building to spite Palestinian protesters complaining about recent crackdowns.
The meeting came amid reports that the United States gave Netanyahu an ultimatum, demanding he stop announcing new settlement construction, and warning that the US would not veto a UN Security Council resolution condemning the illegal settlements if they continued expansion.
Israel has long relied on the US veto to get around UN criticism of settlements and other illegal activities in the occupied territories. Sources quoted in the Israeli press said they believed it was not worth endangering Israel’s international support for a few settlement tenders or an expanded construction in the West Bank.
Israeli officials are not publicly commenting on the matter, but the settlers are, and are loudly condemning the move as a “serious mistake” that threatens Israel in the long run, saying they believe more construction in occupied Palestine is an “ethical” response to Palestinian protests.
i think you missed the point. the us is not demanding a freeze on BUILDING
settlements, but rather on ANNOUNCING new construction.
just as the entire peace "process" is about public perception and without
substance, according to your linked article "the Obama administration had
warned Netanyahu against announcing new construction".
in other words, do what you like, but don't advertise it.
That is, don't advertize it for 15 months, when the next Pres is inaugurated.
Now they need to start vacating the settlements, or better yet, gifting the ones already in place to the Palestinians.
See America, you can do it!
When it comes to israel, the US is like some dependent, depressed crackwhore unable to even entertain a modicum of self-assertion.
The US has "threatened" before – and the Israelis have thumbed their noses in response – and the US went back to their knees…so, what's different this time? I find it hard to believe that first, the US is serious about not vetoing a UN condemnation if Israel and second, that Netanyahoo took the knee to Obama. There's a better chance Obama gets elected Grand Wizard.
It is out of character. If you track back the links, Ditz cites the Times of Israel, which cites a local TV station, which quoted anonymous "officials" talking to a local TV reporter.
read carefully. there is no freeze on construction.
they were simply told not to announce "new"
construction projects….giving washington cover
to (threaten to) veto upcoming un resolution.
announcements may continue once the threat
of resolution passage is removed.
The NYT just had a front page report that Israel is massively expanding settlements in the Golan Heights, exploiting Syrian troubles to make impossible the prior peace proposals they had made.
Is that an offset for this? Anyway, we need to include that in our ultimatum. It is the same issue, making peace impossible, quite deliberately, in order to further expand Greater Israel of their right wing.
Too little too late