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| Netanyahu Halts Some Settlement Plans, but Others to Proceed | Netanyahu Halts Some Settlement Plans, but Others to Proceed |
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| JERUSALEM — With relations between Israel and the United States in distress over deep disagreements on Iranian nuclear negotiations and construction in West Bank settlements, Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu on Tuesday froze plans for building in a particularly contentious area outside Jerusalem known as E1. | JERUSALEM — With relations between Israel and the United States in distress over deep disagreements on Iranian nuclear negotiations and construction in West Bank settlements, Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu on Tuesday froze plans for building in a particularly contentious area outside Jerusalem known as E1. |
| But Israel’s housing ministry nonetheless approved spending nearly $13 million on initial planning for about 20,000 new units in West Bank territory seized by Israel in 1967, which Palestinian leaders and left-wing Israelis condemned as a sign that Mr. Netanyahu was not serious about the peace talks that started this summer. | |
| A senior official in the prime minister’s office, speaking on the condition of anonymity because he was not authorized to speak publicly, said Mr. Netanyahu had halted construction plans in E1, a vast, hilly expanse between East Jerusalem and a large Israeli settlement called Maale Adumim, so as not to exacerbate tensions with Washington and the West. | A senior official in the prime minister’s office, speaking on the condition of anonymity because he was not authorized to speak publicly, said Mr. Netanyahu had halted construction plans in E1, a vast, hilly expanse between East Jerusalem and a large Israeli settlement called Maale Adumim, so as not to exacerbate tensions with Washington and the West. |
| A year ago, Israel prompted an international uproar by declaring its intention to build there a day after the United Nations voted to upgrade the Palestinians’ status to an observer state. Palestinians contend that construction in E1, short for East 1, would disrupt the contiguity of their future state. | A year ago, Israel prompted an international uproar by declaring its intention to build there a day after the United Nations voted to upgrade the Palestinians’ status to an observer state. Palestinians contend that construction in E1, short for East 1, would disrupt the contiguity of their future state. |
| “At this moment, when we want the focus of the international community on Iran, it just doesn’t make sense to point people’s attention to an issue which ultimately has no real significance,” the Israeli official said Tuesday. As to the broader plans approved by the housing ministry, the official played them down as part of a “yearly bureaucratic process” outlining “long-term goals,” and emphasized, “This is not construction — construction requires separate decisions.” | “At this moment, when we want the focus of the international community on Iran, it just doesn’t make sense to point people’s attention to an issue which ultimately has no real significance,” the Israeli official said Tuesday. As to the broader plans approved by the housing ministry, the official played them down as part of a “yearly bureaucratic process” outlining “long-term goals,” and emphasized, “This is not construction — construction requires separate decisions.” |
| The calibrated move came days after Secretary of State John Kerry criticized in harsher terms than usual Israel’s continued construction in West Bank settlements, contributing to a crisis of confidence between Washington and Jerusalem centered on the diplomatic initiative with Iran. | The calibrated move came days after Secretary of State John Kerry criticized in harsher terms than usual Israel’s continued construction in West Bank settlements, contributing to a crisis of confidence between Washington and Jerusalem centered on the diplomatic initiative with Iran. |
| Mr. Netanyahu has relentlessly criticized an interim deal being proposed in which Iran would freeze much of its nuclear program in exchange for an easing of some economic sanctions. “There is no need to rush into a bad deal,” he reiterated on Tuesday. | Mr. Netanyahu has relentlessly criticized an interim deal being proposed in which Iran would freeze much of its nuclear program in exchange for an easing of some economic sanctions. “There is no need to rush into a bad deal,” he reiterated on Tuesday. |
| During a visit here last week, Mr. Kerry called settlements “illegitimate” and said in a joint television interview with Israeli and Palestinian journalists, “The entire peace process would in fact be easier if the settlements were not taking place.” | During a visit here last week, Mr. Kerry called settlements “illegitimate” and said in a joint television interview with Israeli and Palestinian journalists, “The entire peace process would in fact be easier if the settlements were not taking place.” |
| “Let me ask you something: How, if you say you’re working for peace and you want peace and a Palestine that is a whole Palestine that belongs to the people who live there, how can you say we’re planning to build in the place that will eventually be Palestine?” Mr. Kerry said in the interview, causing much consternation among Israeli commentators. | “Let me ask you something: How, if you say you’re working for peace and you want peace and a Palestine that is a whole Palestine that belongs to the people who live there, how can you say we’re planning to build in the place that will eventually be Palestine?” Mr. Kerry said in the interview, causing much consternation among Israeli commentators. |
| “It sends a message that somehow, perhaps, you’re not really serious,” he added. “If you announce planning, I believe it is disruptive to the process.” | “It sends a message that somehow, perhaps, you’re not really serious,” he added. “If you announce planning, I believe it is disruptive to the process.” |
| Bernadette Meehan, a White House spokeswoman, said Tuesday that the Obama administration was “deeply concerned” about the planning moves, and that it was “seeking further explanation” from the Israeli government. “We have called on both sides to take steps to create a positive atmosphere for the negotiations,” she said in a statement. “We do not consider settlement planning, even in its early stages, to be a step that creates a positive environment for the negotiations.” | Bernadette Meehan, a White House spokeswoman, said Tuesday that the Obama administration was “deeply concerned” about the planning moves, and that it was “seeking further explanation” from the Israeli government. “We have called on both sides to take steps to create a positive atmosphere for the negotiations,” she said in a statement. “We do not consider settlement planning, even in its early stages, to be a step that creates a positive environment for the negotiations.” |
| Israeli and Palestinian critics said Tuesday’s decision, to hire architects and urban planners for numerous projects that would expand various West Bank settlements, was a sign that the peace process itself was doomed. | Israeli and Palestinian critics said Tuesday’s decision, to hire architects and urban planners for numerous projects that would expand various West Bank settlements, was a sign that the peace process itself was doomed. |
| “They’re telling the Palestinians there’s no reason to talk, but we want the charade of talks while we continue to steal your land and build more settlements,” said Hanan Ashrawi, a member of the Palestine Liberation Organization’s executive committee. “Netanyahu tries to pay lip service, but he’s telling the Palestinians, and he’s telling the rest of the world, he’s telling John Kerry and the Americans, ‘We act unilaterally, we impose our will.’ There’s nothing left to talk about, really.” | “They’re telling the Palestinians there’s no reason to talk, but we want the charade of talks while we continue to steal your land and build more settlements,” said Hanan Ashrawi, a member of the Palestine Liberation Organization’s executive committee. “Netanyahu tries to pay lip service, but he’s telling the Palestinians, and he’s telling the rest of the world, he’s telling John Kerry and the Americans, ‘We act unilaterally, we impose our will.’ There’s nothing left to talk about, really.” |
| Yariv Oppenheimer, director of Peace Now, which opposes Jewish settlement in the occupied Palestinian territories, said there had not been such a large push forward on settlement construction in one swoop in decades. Despite Mr. Netanyahu’s hesitance on E1, Mr. Oppenheimer said, the broader plan indicates that he is using the peace talks as “a very good alibi” while working to “destroy” the two-state solution to the Israeli-Palestinian conflict, “to make it impossible.” | Yariv Oppenheimer, director of Peace Now, which opposes Jewish settlement in the occupied Palestinian territories, said there had not been such a large push forward on settlement construction in one swoop in decades. Despite Mr. Netanyahu’s hesitance on E1, Mr. Oppenheimer said, the broader plan indicates that he is using the peace talks as “a very good alibi” while working to “destroy” the two-state solution to the Israeli-Palestinian conflict, “to make it impossible.” |
| “E1 is just maybe the symbol of the disagreements between America and Israel,” Mr. Oppenheimer said. “This is very sensitive for Americans, but all the other places are not less controversial. There are enough places there that are so controversial, it’s enough for a daily crisis for a year.” | “E1 is just maybe the symbol of the disagreements between America and Israel,” Mr. Oppenheimer said. “This is very sensitive for Americans, but all the other places are not less controversial. There are enough places there that are so controversial, it’s enough for a daily crisis for a year.” |
| A spokesman for the housing ministry, which is run by a right-wing, pro-settlement politician who opposes the establishment of a Palestinian state, said in a statement that the planning was in “the most initial phase” and that it could be years before the settlements were actually built. Still, he said Israel would build “all over the country.” | A spokesman for the housing ministry, which is run by a right-wing, pro-settlement politician who opposes the establishment of a Palestinian state, said in a statement that the planning was in “the most initial phase” and that it could be years before the settlements were actually built. Still, he said Israel would build “all over the country.” |
| “There are Israeli elements who do not acknowledge the outcome of Israeli elections and the Israeli democracy, which has formed the government’s makeup and policy less than a year ago,” said the spokesman, Ariel Rosenberg. “Transferring the argument overseas is a foolish thing to do, is a harsh blow to democracy, and is destined to fail.” | “There are Israeli elements who do not acknowledge the outcome of Israeli elections and the Israeli democracy, which has formed the government’s makeup and policy less than a year ago,” said the spokesman, Ariel Rosenberg. “Transferring the argument overseas is a foolish thing to do, is a harsh blow to democracy, and is destined to fail.” |
| Earlier on Tuesday, Avigdor Lieberman, having been reinstated as Israel’s foreign minister after an acquittal on fraud charges, expressed concern about the disconnect between Washington and Jerusalem that has been on public display in recent days. | Earlier on Tuesday, Avigdor Lieberman, having been reinstated as Israel’s foreign minister after an acquittal on fraud charges, expressed concern about the disconnect between Washington and Jerusalem that has been on public display in recent days. |
| His comments were a rebuke to Mr. Netanyahu,f and something of a surprise given his history of speaking bluntly and his own hawkish views on both Iran and the Palestinian question. | |
| “We need to understand that relations with the U.S. are foundations set in stone — without them we can’t maneuver in the contemporary world,” Mr. Lieberman told the diplomatic corps at the foreign ministry headquarters, according to an Israeli news site. “All these differences of opinion, which are natural and have always existed, should simply not be aired as publicly as they were.” | |
Michael D. Shear contributed reporting from Washington. | Michael D. Shear contributed reporting from Washington. |