Washington: The United States is planning to
express its disappointment with Israel's decision to
accelerate settlement construction in east Jerusalem and the
West Bank in retaliation for the Palestinians winning
membership from the United Nation's cultural organisation.
Two US officials say the Obama administration intends to
make that position clear on today.
The administration is trying to determine how to deal
with actions by both sides that it considers detrimental to
restarting peace talks.
The US officials spoke on condition of anonymity to
discuss the administration's thinking before the release of
the statement.
Israel is accelerating housing construction in both east
Jerusalem, which the Palestinians see as their capital, and
the West Bank.
The US opposes Israeli settlement activity as well as the
Palestinians' bid for membership in UN organisation.
PTI
First Published: Thursday, November 03, 2011, 00:39