US Attacks Israel Over West Bank Settlements

The Financial Times reports that "the Obama administration attacked Israel on Friday for giving the green light to the building of hundreds of new homes in the occupied West Bank even as the two sides negotiate a freeze on settlement construction. Benjamin Netanyahu, Israel’s prime minister, is set to approve the new homes in the coming days, a move that appears aimed at softening opposition within his rightwing Likud party to a temporary settlement freeze. An official close to Mr Netanyahu who declined to be identified because of the sensitivity of the issue said the PM would consider freezing building 'for a few months' only after giving the green light to the construction of the new units for Jewish settlers. 'We regret the reports of Israel’s plans to approve additional settlement construction,' said Robert Gibbs, White House spokesman. 'The US does not accept the legitimacy of continued settlement expansion and we urge that it stop. We are working to create a climate in which negotiations can take place, and such actions make it harder to create such a climate.'" Tweet