UN slams Israel settlements

UK: UN Secretary General Ban Ki-moon expressed concern to Israel’s Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu about new settlement construction in the Palestinian territories, a UN spokesman said.

Ban and Netanyahu focused on the deadlocked Middle East peace process in talks at UN headquarters, held a few hours after Israel approved more than 1,300 new homes in occupied east Jerusalem.

“The Secretary General emphasized that it was vital to break the current diplomatic stalemate, resume negotiations and produce results,” the UN spokesman said in a statement.

Ban “expressed concern at the resumption of the settlement activity and recent announcements of further settlement construction in east Jerusalem.”

The Secretary General also “expressed hope for further measures by the Israel government to ease the movement of people and goods to and from Gaza.”

Ban and Netanyahu discussed the broader region, including Iran, tensions in Hezbollah-dominated southern Lebanon and Israel’s military presence in the Lebanese border village of Ghajar.

Netanyahu was to announce Israel’s withdrawal from the village at the meeting, an Israeli official said Sunday. But the UN statement made no mention of such an offer.

The Israeli prime minister’s spokesman said no comment on the meeting with Ban was expected.

The Israeli leader is on a short tour of the United States and is to meet US Secretary of State Hillary Clinton on Thursday.

The US administration said earlier it was “deeply disappointed” by the new settler homes.

The United States called the announcement “counterproductive to our efforts to resume direct negotiations between the parties,” said State Department spokesman Philip Crowley.

Tuesday, AFP