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Jerusalem. Israel on Monday approved the building of 455 settler homes in the occupied West Bank, a move opposed by its US ally and Palestinians but that could pave the way for a construction moratorium sought by Washington.

A Defense Ministry list of the first such building permits since Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu took office in March showed the homes would be erected in areas Israel says it intends to keep in a future peace deal with the Palestinians.

Palestinian chief negotiator Saeb Erekat said Israel’s decision further undermined any belief that it is a credible partner for peace .

Israeli officials announced on Friday that Netanyahu intended to give the go-ahead for the new projects in the occupied West Bank, drawing swift condemnation from the White House.

The permits, signed by Defense Minister Ehud Barak, were widely seen in Israel as an attempt by Netanyahu to mollify pro-settler members of his government and Likud party before agreeing to a freeze of construction.

“This is a huge smokescreen,” said Pinhas Wallerstein, a settler leader, suggesting the step was only a token gesture meant to mask a real intention to bend to US pressure to curb settlement expansion.

US President Barack Obama, raising the prospect of steps by Arab countries to normalize relations with Israel, has pushed Netanyahu for a settlement freeze to open the way for a revival of Israeli-Palestinian peace talks suspended since December.

Netanyahu has resisted a complete moratorium, saying “natural growth” of settler families must be accommodated. Some 2,500 housing units are under construction in settlements, and Israeli officials said those projects would continue.

Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas has demanded a settlement freeze as a condition for returning to peace negotiations.

In a statement, Erekat, the Palestinian negotiator, said, “Israel’s decision to approve the construction of over 450 new settlement units nullifies any effect that a settlement freeze, when and if announced, will have.”

Opposition leader Tzipi Livni of the centrist Kadima party scoffed at what she described as an attempt by Netanyahu to “throw a bone” to settlers before agreeing to a moratorium.

“There’s nothing real happening here save for Netanyahu’s survival,” Livni said, comparing approval of new housing before a construction freeze to “building an igloo in the summer.”



Reuters