Abbas: Planned expansion of settlements unacceptable

Published today (updated) 04/09/2009 15:55

 Bethlehem – Ma’an/Agencies –

  Israeli occupation government prime minister Benjamin Netanyahu's planned approval of the construction of new homes for illegal Israeli settlers in the Palestinian territory of the West Bank is "unacceptable," President Mahmoud Abbas said on Friday in Paris.

"What the Israeli government said [about the planned construction] is not useful. It is unacceptable for us. We want a freeze on all (the illegal Israeli) settlement construction," Abbas was quoted as saying by DPA after a meeting with French President Nicolas Sarkozy.

Abbas was reacting to reports that Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu plans to approve the construction of hundreds of new settler homes in the occupied West Bank before considering a settlement freeze.

Abbas also told journalists that a possible summit with Netanyahu and US President Barack Obama in New York, on the margins of a UN General Assembly meeting, depended "on steps that are taken beforehand regarding a settlement construction freeze."

According to DPA, Abbas had said on Thursday reiterated that he would not meet Netanyahu until construction in the settlements is halted.

The president added, after a meeting with French Foreign Minister Bernard Kouchner, that a resumption of the entire Middle East peace process depended on a freeze on Israeli settlement construction.

"Regarding the peace process, we are prepared to continue the negotiations if Israel stops settlement construction," he said, as quoted by DPA.

Senior Palestinian negotiator Saeb Erekat Palestinian Authority had also slammed the move on Friday, saying it would derail any progress in peace negotiations.

"I think the only thing that will be suspended by this announcement is the peace process," Erekat said.

New construction

Netanyahu leaked news of the new settlement apartments earlier on Friday.

Citing an aide to Israel’s right wing leader, AP reported that the approval of the new construction was is expected “in the next few days.”

The US has been pressing Israel to halt the construction of the settlements, which are illegal under international law and build on land seized from Palestinians. The Palestinian Authority leadership also says it will not negotiate with Netanyahu until he agrees to a freeze.

Even in verbally referring to a freeze It was unclear to what extent Israel would actually stop construction.

AP said that Netanyahu made it clear through his aide that Israel does not intend to abandon its West Bank settlements, and it seemed clear that thousands of units would continue to be built in the West Bank even during a supposed “freeze.”

Netanyahu also said in the past that he would not allow a freeze on settlements in East Jerusalem, the putative Palestinian capital.

The decision to continue expanding the settlements is at odds with Israel’s previous commitments under the Road Map, the Oslo agreements, and international humanitarian law. It also falls short of the US and Palestinian demand that all settlement construction come to a halt, including in Jerusalem, before negotiations can resume.

The new settler housing units would be in addition to the 2,500 that are already under construction and will continue to be built, AP’s source made clear.

In exchange for a suspension, Netanyahu would expect the Arab world to take steps toward normalizing relations with Israel, the aide added, according to AP.

Although Netanyahu’s suggested “freeze” would have a number of loopholes, the prime minister still faces opposition from the his own party, the right-wing Likud. Right-wing politicians expressed their objections in a meeting on Thursday.

Netanyahu’s aide who spoke anonymously to the press sought to reassure the right wing, saying that these officials would be "pleasantly surprised" by the agreements to be reached with the Americans.

Likud’s Central Committee is scheduled to hold another meeting next week to discuss the potential ”freeze,” the Hebrew-language newspaper Ma’ariv reported. Settlers are well-represented on this committee.

According to news reports, US Special Envoy George Mitchell is expected in the region next week for key talks with Israeli officials.