U.S. vows to halt Israeli building in East Jerusalem

[TruthSeeker]

Israel snubs US call on Jerusalem

GWEN ACKERMAN AND PETER GREEN, WASHINGTON, March 24, 2010

ISRAEL'S Prime Minister, Benjamin Netanyahu, has rebuffed a US call to halt construction in occupied East Jerusalem on the eve of a White House meeting with President Barack Obama.

''Jerusalem is not a settlement. It is our capital,'' Mr Netanyahu told the American Israel Public Affairs Committee (AIPAC) in a speech last night in Washington.

Earlier, US Secretary of State Hillary Clinton told the pro-Israel lobbying group that settlement construction in parts of the city sought by Palestinians as the capital of their proposed state ''exposes daylight between Israel and the United States that others in the region could hope to exploit''.

Mrs Clinton and Mr Netanyahu also met yesterday, though a venue change led to more speculation about ''daylight'' between the two allies.

The 75-minute meeting was moved from the State Department to the Mayflower Hotel, where Mr Netanyahu was staying, raising questions about whether they wanted to be photographed together. Israeli and US officials insisted it was a logistical mix-up.

News photographers were barred from the meeting and US and Israeli officials declined to say what was discussed.

Mrs Clinton received warm applause from the AIPAC audience when she called for sanctions with ''bite'' in response to Iran's nuclear program.

But the audience were much quieter when she urged Israelis to make unpopular concessions for peace, warning the lengthening reach of militant rockets and an expanding Palestinian Arab population in Israel and the territories it occupies make the status quo unsustainable.

''We cannot ignore the long-term population trends that result from Israeli occupation,'' she said. ''The inexorable mathematics of demography are hastening the hour at which Israelis may have to choose between preserving their democracy and staying true to the dream of a Jewish homeland.''

Palestinian Authority President Mahmoud Abbas, after meeting US Middle East envoy George Mitchell in the Jordanian capital Amman on Monday, linked participation in indirect talks to Israel's freezing the announced construction plans for 1600 homes in East Jerusalem, said the Palestinian news agency Wafa.

The controversy also appears to have galvanised international opposition to Jewish expansion in East Jerusalem.

On Monday, European Union foreign ministers expressed disappointment in Mr Netanyahu's position that Israel has as much right to build in East Jerusalem as in Tel Aviv.

''I can say very clearly that Jerusalem is not Tel Aviv,'' Luxembourg Foreign Minister Jean Asselborn was quoted as saying during a meeting in Brussels.

Two new housing projects in the occupied portion of the city have been put on hold to avoid any embarrassing announcements while Mr Netanyahu is visiting the US, according to Israeli newspapers.

Israel snubs US call on Jerusalem

 

[s6demon]

Hillary was talking with AIPAC a day before Netanyahu and her toned softened up a lot.

 

[waraich66]

March 24, 2010 -- Updated 0025 GMT (0825 HKT)
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu walks into the West Wing of the White House on Tuesday.
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu walks into the West Wing of the White House on Tuesday.
STORY HIGHLIGHTS

* Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu arrived at the White House on Tuesday evening
* Earlier, Netanyahu met with leaders of Congress from both parties in a show of solidarity
* U.S.-Israeli relations hit rough patch after row over future building in East Jerusalem
* PM: "Connection between the Jewish people and Jerusalem cannot be denied"

Washington (CNN) -- U.S. President Barack Obama and Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu held more than two hours of talks Tuesday evening amid a dispute over Israel's decision to build new Jewish housing on disputed land in East Jerusalem.

The Obama administration has pushed to restart peace talks between Israel and the Palestinians and has called on Israel to stop building settlements on territory it captured in the 1967 Mideast war. Netanyahu's meeting at the White House came the day after he defended his government's plans to build new housing units in East Jerusalem, a move that has strained ties with Israel's largest ally.

The Israeli leader arrived after a show of solidarity with leaders of Congress from both parties, during which he thanked the U.S. lawmakers for their "constant support" and "unflagging" friendship.

"Even though the challenges are immense, our will and our partnership is also immense," Netanyahu said at an appearance with House Speaker Nancy Pelosi, D-California, and House Minority Leader John Boehner, R-Ohio.

"We have no stronger ally anywhere in the world than Israel and we all know that we're in a difficult moment, but I'm glad the prime minister is here ... so we can have an open and straightforward dialogue about how we can provide more security for our friends in Israel and do everything we can to make sure that the Iranians have no ability to develop a nuclear weapon," Boehner said.

Pelosi told reporters that Congress speaks with "one voice" on the subject of Israel.
Video: Pelosi: 'We stand by Israel'
Video: 'Peace requires reciprocity'
RELATED TOPICS

* Israel
* Middle East Conflict
* Benjamin Netanyahu
* Barack Obama
* Hillary Clinton

"Together we remain committed to advancing the peace process, preserving Israel's security, responsible sanctions against Iran," she said.

Netanyahu's visit to Washington comes as Israel and the United States find themselves at odds over Israel's plan to build new housing on disputed land in East Jerusalem -- a plan he defended sharply Monday night.

Israel's announcement two weeks ago that it plans to build 1,600 apartments in an area claimed by both Israelis and Palestinians came amid an Obama administration push for new Israeli-Palestinian talks, but Netanyahu told the American Israel Public Affairs Committee that "The connection between the Jewish people and Jerusalem cannot be denied."

"The Jewish people were building Jerusalem 3,000 years ago, and the Jewish people are building Jerusalem today," he told AIPAC, the leading pro-Israel lobby in the United States, to prolonged applause. "Jerusalem is not a settlement. It is our capital."

Palestinian leaders have refused to rejoin peace talks until Israel freezes the construction of Jewish settlements in the West Bank and East Jerusalem. But Netanyahu said "everyone knows" the neighborhoods where the new housing units will be built "will be part of Israel in any peace settlement," and the new construction "in no way precludes the possibility of a two-state solution."

The State Department carefully avoided criticism of Netanyahu on Tuesday. State Department spokesman P.J. Crowley told reporters the United States would continue conversations with Israel and efforts to create "an atmosphere of trust" between Israel and the Palestinians.

"Do we see eye to eye on everything? No," Crowley told reporters at the State Department. "Are we satisfied with the exchange and the seriousness the prime minister has taken our concerns on board? We are. And this is a conversation that has involved the secretary and obviously today will involve the president as well."

Netanyahu met Monday with Vice President Joe Biden and with Secretary of State Hillary Clinton, who has called the Israeli announcement insulting. In her own speech to AIPAC, she said the U.S. commitment to Israel's security was "rock-solid" -- but added that as "Israel's friend, it is our responsibility to give credit when it is due and to tell the truth when it is needed."

"We objected to this announcement because we are committed to Israel and its security, which we believe depends on a comprehensive peace -- because we are determined to keep moving forward along a path that ensures Israel's future as a secure and democratic Jewish state living in peace with its Palestinian and Arab neighbors," Clinton said.

The United States is Israel's leading ally and provides nearly $3 billion a year in aid to the Jewish state, about three-quarters of which goes to purchase U.S. military equipment. AIPAC has called on the Obama administration to step back from its "public demands and unilateral deadlines directed at Israel," but Clinton defended the administration's call for Israel to stop building in largely Arab East Jerusalem.

Israeli Jewish State was made on Peslistine land , How it can be recognised?????