The Beit El housing is just another bump in the road for her. “There is no need for this to become a pretext for drama or anger,” she said. As for the American government, “They listened and they understood and for the moment, there is no reaction.”
Kerry can be expected to try to convince Abbas to swallow the frog and trust good ol’ John, who wants exactly what Abbas wants – a Jew-less Judea and Samaria. Thast is not because Kerry hates Jews. He simply knows it is easier to bleed Netanyahu instead of having to be bled by the entire Arab world. And don’t forget to fill up the gas tank on the way.
Israel cannot back down from building homes in Beit El because of a previous promise, and it would not be surprising if the Netanyahu administration purposely timed the Beit El announcement to counter opposition within the coalition to the de facto freeze.
The promise to build homes followed the expulsion of 33 families in the Ulpana neighborhood of Beit El, which the courts ruled was built on land that they bought from an Arab who was not registered as the land owner.
Kerry has four weeks to at least stage a ceremonious meeting between Netanyahu and Abbas, or at least between senior negotiators, to save face and keep his momentum going, even if it has no course or direction.