1100 homes for Israeli settlers underway, "a slap in the face to the international community"
by Joshua Lapide
For the Israelis, they are "a nice gift for Rosh Hashanah", the Jewish New Year which begins tonight. For the Palestinian Authority this is a "concrete and unilateral precondition", just as Netayahu demands the Palestinians do not put "preconditions on dialogue". Uri Avneri accuses Obama - and his pro-Israeli statements - of wanting to win votes for the next election campaign. Weak statement of "regret" from EU.
Jerusalem (AsiaNews) - "A slap in the face to all international efforts to protect the tenuous prospects for peace in the region", Palestinian Authority (PA) representative, Saeb Erekat, thus brands the Israeli decision to launch the construction of 1100 other houses for settlers in the Gilo area of East Jerusalem,.
The announcement came just a few days after the impassioned appeal by Mahmoud at the UN, where he sought a seat for a Palestinian state "within the 1967 borders". According to the Ynet site, the new constructions will be "a gift for Rosh Hashanah [the Jewish New Year, which begins tonight at sundown tonight]."
For the past year Abbas, president of the PA, has proposed a resumption of talks with Israel as long buildings and the expansion of Israeli settlements in the occupied territories and East Jerusalem were stopped.
All these constructions are illegal under international law. During its occupation in 1967, Israel requisitioned land and built homes for more than 500 thousand Israeli settlements. This policy increasingly erodes the possibility of giving birth to a Palestinian state with clear boundaries.
At the UN Assembly, referring to the request to block settlements, the Israeli prime minister Benjamin Netanyahu called on Abbas not to set "preconditions for dialogue". For the PA, the decision to build more homes for 1100 settlers in Gilo is "putting concrete preconditions on the ground." "He [Netanyahu] - a PA statement continues - says that there should be no unilateral steps, but there is nothing more one-sided than this new round of massive construction of settlements on Palestinian territory."
Israel's decision embarrasses Barack Obama, who had advised Abbas at the UN not to proceed with his request and threatened the use of theUS veto. At the same time, he and Netanyahu had urged Abbas to resume direct talks.
In various interventions in the past, Obama had always demanded an end to Israeli settlements. But yesterday, the U.S. ambassador to Israel stated that the United States does not agree with the Palestinian demand to stop the settlements as a precondition to dialogue.
According to the analyst Uri Avneri, these pro-Israel positions will yield Obama "many expressions of love and gratitude that will last for many campaigns to come."
Upon Abbas presenting his request at the UN, even the Quartet (EU, U.S., Russia, UN) - after years of immobility – sprung back to life demanding various deadlines for the resumption of Israeli-Palestinian dialogue.
But yesterday, at the news of new settlements in Gilo, Catherine Ashton, head of EU foreign policy, let slip a very timid and weak comment, expressing "great sorrow" over the Israeli decision.
The announcement came just a few days after the impassioned appeal by Mahmoud at the UN, where he sought a seat for a Palestinian state "within the 1967 borders". According to the Ynet site, the new constructions will be "a gift for Rosh Hashanah [the Jewish New Year, which begins tonight at sundown tonight]."
For the past year Abbas, president of the PA, has proposed a resumption of talks with Israel as long buildings and the expansion of Israeli settlements in the occupied territories and East Jerusalem were stopped.
All these constructions are illegal under international law. During its occupation in 1967, Israel requisitioned land and built homes for more than 500 thousand Israeli settlements. This policy increasingly erodes the possibility of giving birth to a Palestinian state with clear boundaries.
At the UN Assembly, referring to the request to block settlements, the Israeli prime minister Benjamin Netanyahu called on Abbas not to set "preconditions for dialogue". For the PA, the decision to build more homes for 1100 settlers in Gilo is "putting concrete preconditions on the ground." "He [Netanyahu] - a PA statement continues - says that there should be no unilateral steps, but there is nothing more one-sided than this new round of massive construction of settlements on Palestinian territory."
Israel's decision embarrasses Barack Obama, who had advised Abbas at the UN not to proceed with his request and threatened the use of theUS veto. At the same time, he and Netanyahu had urged Abbas to resume direct talks.
In various interventions in the past, Obama had always demanded an end to Israeli settlements. But yesterday, the U.S. ambassador to Israel stated that the United States does not agree with the Palestinian demand to stop the settlements as a precondition to dialogue.
According to the analyst Uri Avneri, these pro-Israel positions will yield Obama "many expressions of love and gratitude that will last for many campaigns to come."
Upon Abbas presenting his request at the UN, even the Quartet (EU, U.S., Russia, UN) - after years of immobility – sprung back to life demanding various deadlines for the resumption of Israeli-Palestinian dialogue.
But yesterday, at the news of new settlements in Gilo, Catherine Ashton, head of EU foreign policy, let slip a very timid and weak comment, expressing "great sorrow" over the Israeli decision.
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03/02/2023 14:31
03/02/2023 14:31
