Has Israel's settlement expansion crossed a 'red line'?
Both Britain and France have summoned Israel's ambassadors to protest plans to expand construction in East Jerusalem, while some say more serious action like economic reprisals are possible.
Both Britain and France have summoned Israel's ambassadors to protest plans to expand construction in East Jerusalem, while some say more serious action like economic reprisals are possible.
Israel's plan to move forward with controversial settlements in eastern Jerusalem 鈥� which it took in apparent retaliation for the Palestinian Authority's recent, successful pursuit of recognition as a United Nations nonmember observer state 鈥� is prompting an angry response, and likely "real action," from Europe.
Haaretz reports that Britain, France, and Sweden have all summoned Israel's respective ambassadors to their countries to condemn the Israeli plan to build 3,000 new settlement units in the "E1" bloc, a region in eastern Jerusalem, while Germany and Russia both called upon Israel to rethink its plans. And more serious action may be coming, including substantial economic reprisals, Haaretz adds.
Haaretz writes that according to three senior European Union diplomats, Britain and France are coordinating their response to Israel, and have discussed recalling their ambassadors, a major diplomatic rebuke and a first for both countries against Israel. A French Foreign Ministry official told Reuters, however, "There are other ways in which we can express our disapproval" than by recalling ambassadors.
Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu's announcement to expand the E1 settlements comes just a day after the UN voted overwhelmingly to recognize the Palestinian Authority (PA) as a state, albeit one with "nonvoting observer status" in the UN. The move passed 138 to 9, with 41 abstentions.聽 Britain and Germany, both longtime supporters of Israel, abstained from the vote, while France, Russia, and Sweden all supported the PA.聽 The United States was among the few opposition votes.
Building in the E1 region is particularly sensitive, as it would potentially cut off the West Bank from Jerusalem, which a Palestinian state, sharing with Israel, would use as its capital. The BBC's Jonathan Marcus notes that Israel has told successive US administrations that it would not build in the E1 region, and that such policy change is provocative even to Washington.
UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon's spokesman criticized Israel's E1 expansion as a violation of international law. Mr. Ban's office released a statement Sunday saying he viewed the Israeli move with "grave concern and disappointment."
Catherine Ashton, the EU's head of foreign affairs, and French Foreign Minister Laurent Fabius also criticized the decision along similar lines, reports The Guardian. Ms. Ashton said the move "may represent a strategic step undermining the prospects of a contiguous and viable Palestine with Jerusalem as the shared capital of both it and Israel," while Mr. Fabius called it a "new area of colonization" that would "sap the necessary confidence in a resumption of talks."