Slippery Slope

MK Avigdor Lieberman (Likud-Beitenu) says that he will oppose any construction freeze in the West Bank. (Ynetnews)

(Hebrew – Ynet)

Senior figures in Israel and the United States have announced that negotiations to achieve an additional construction freeze in the Occupied West Bank have come to a dead end. A senior American diplomatic figure is quoted as saying that “we have come to the conclusion that this is not the right time for renewing direct negotiations by means of renewing the construction freeze.”  (Hebrew)

Defense Minister Ehud Barak promised Shas Chairman Eli Yishai that he would authorize the publication of dozens of construction tenders in the West Bank after the coming construction freeze in the Occupied Territories. He did this with the intention of persuading Shas to abstain in the vote about the renewal of construction freeze. (Hebrew)

At a meeting of the Eretz Yisrael Shelanu [our land of Israel] movement with representatives of Noar Hagvaot [hilltop youths], a decision was taken to start a campaign against the Shas party, because it has decided to abstain in a vote about the construction freeze in the Occupied Palestinian Territories. Meeting participants said that the Shas leaders were “engaged in acts of treason” and that “there is a duty to protest against them.” Rabbi Shalom Dov Wolfa said at the meeting that “we’ve got to remind the Shas people and the ones responsible for handing over territories that there are laws and there are judges, and that they will pay for this crime.” (Hebrew)