The US administration of President Joe Biden has quietly been pressuring Israeli Prime Minister Naftali Bennett and his coalition government to “show restraint” on the issue of settlements, according to an English-language report in Axios by Israeli reporter Barak Ravid.
In fact, the administration has been “engaged” with the Israeli government on the issue of settlements every week since Bennett met with Biden on August 27 at the White House.
When pressed during their meeting, Bennett told Biden that Israel will build in Jewish communities in Judea and Samaria only according to needs arising from natural growth.
Bennett Promises Settlements’ Leaders: No Construction Freeze
But the prime minister told leaders of the Yesha Council in a working meeting upon his return from Washington last month that he had made it clear to administration officials that there would be no construction freeze.
Prior to Bennett’s trip to Washington, Israel’s Subcommittee on Objections in the Supreme Planning Council in the Civil Administration tasked with approving settlement construction was supposed to meet this past August after an eight-month hiatus. On the agenda would have been a discussion about the planning of 2,000 more housing units in Jewish communities in Judea and Samaria. That figure was originally 4,000+ housing units but was slashed to appease the White House.
Bennett Folds Under US Pressure, Cuts Down Settlement Construction to 2,000 Units
But before the committee was able to meet, a Defense Ministry workers’ union went on strike, postponing the meeting indefinitely.
The Defense Ministry had already approved 1,000 building permits for Palestinian Authority Arabs living in Area C, the area under Israeli control since the signing of the Oslo Accords.
Following Israeli reports of Bennett’s remarks to the settler leaders, America’s highest-ranking diplomat in Jerusalem, Charge D’Affairs Michael Ratney, reiterated Biden’s words to senior officials in the Prime Minister’s Office, underlining concerns over possible construction in the “E1” area near Jerusalem, Ravid reported.
And a spokesperson for the US Embassy called for “all parties to refrain from unilateral steps that exacerbate tensions and undercut efforts to advance a negotiated two-state solution,” Ravid reported.
“That includes settlement activity,” the spokesperson added.
Few seem to notice that Washington is again applying a double standard to its dealings with Israel: According to a report by Regavim, the Palestinian Authority has established 100 new and illegal schools in the past 12 years in Area C, allegedly secured and controlled by Israel under the Oslo Accords.
All were funded and established by member states in the European Union and other international pressure groups, without bothering to get permission from Israel.