Obama Administration Maintains Pro-Israel Stance for Less Than a Week

Clinton: Gilo Construction Counter-Productive to Peace -Melanie Lidman

U.S. Secretary of State Hillary Clinton said: "We believe that [the] announcement by the government of Israel approving the construction of housing units in east Jerusalem is counter-productive to our efforts to resume direct negotiations between the parties."
(Jerusalem Post)
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Administration Refights the Battle of Gilo -Jonathan S. Tobin

Those who believed the Obama administration's attitude toward Israel has changed for the better got a rude wakeup call when Washington condemned the start of a housing project in Jerusalem.

Gilo is no settlement. Built on the southern border of the city, it was established more than 40 years ago and is the home of approximately 40,000 residents of Israel's capital. Up until Barack Obama took office, it was not the subject of much comment by any previous administration. By seeking to force Israel to cease building houses in existing Jewish neighborhoods in Jerusalem, Obama has legitimized Palestinian demands for not only a re-division of the city but also their desire to evict more than 200,000 Jews.

During the second intifada, Gilo was under constant murderous sniper fire from the nearby Arab village of Beit Jala. Despite murderous attacks for many months, the Jews of Gilo stood their ground. Gilo became one of many symbols of the courage of the Israeli people and their determination to hold onto Jerusalem.

Building in Gilo - or any other part of Jerusalem - would have no effect on the creation of a Palestinian state if a peace deal should ever be signed. The only way homes in Gilo could be construed as an obstacle to peace is if the vision of peace being pursued is one in which every Jew is thrown out of Jerusalem.

Despite the hopeful signs about a rapprochement between the administration and Israel during the debate in the UN, the president is still holding on to dangerous misconceptions about Jerusalem.
(Commentary)
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UPDATES: 

Panetta's Pointless Warning to Israel -Jonathan S. Tobin

Defense Secretary Leon Panetta warned Israel that its increasing isolation in the region means it must take "risks for peace." But this is not likely to make much of an impression with the Israeli people for the simple reason that Israel has been taking risks for peace for 18 years. After the 1993 Oslo Accords, the peace offers that both Yasser Arafat and Mahmoud Abbas rejected, and the withdrawal from Gaza that turned that area into a terrorist state, Israel has taken terrible risks for which it has gotten little reward.
(Commentary)
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Jerusalem Mayor Defends Housing Plan  -Tani Goldstein

Last week the Jerusalem Planning Committee approved the construction of 1,100 apartments in the Gilo neighborhood, a move that drew widespread criticism from abroad. Jerusalem Mayor Nir Barkat stressed the importance of ongoing construction in the city "as the only solution to the housing crisis." "The Gilo construction critics expect that we will discriminate against Jews and only allow Arabs to build....When I talk to U.S. government officials, it appears they are not aware that we approve construction both for Arabs and Jews."

"We build for Arabs in east Jerusalem, including legalization of unregulated housing. In the neighborhood of Arnona, we recently authorized 1,000 apartments for Jews and 1,500 for Arabs. So what do they want? That we freeze construction for everyone? For Arabs too? And leave the natural growth issue unanswered? Or only ban Jewish construction?"
(Ynet News)
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