Israel Defies Washington, Approves Settlement Expansion

Israeli Defense Minister Ehud Barak (file)

(07/09/2009) Israeli Defense Minister Ehud Barak has given official approval to the construction of 455 housing units in Jewish settlements in the Israeli-occupied West Bank. The move counters U.S. calls for a freeze on settlements. Palestinian officials are calling the decision a setback for the peace process.

Negotiations have been stalled for months, and analysts say the Israeli government's decision to expand a number of settlements appeared to be a major blow to efforts to revive them.

An Israeli Defense Ministry statement said Defense Minister Ehud Barak has authorized the construction of 455 housing units in settlement blocks. The government of Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu defends its policy saying the construction within existing settlements is necessary to accommodate natural growth.

A view of a construction site of a new housing development in the West Bank Jewish settlement of Maaleh Adumim, on the outskirts of Jerusalem, 06 Sep 2009

The Palestinians have said they will not return to negotiations as long as Israeli settlement expansion continues.

Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas' official spokesman, Nabil Abu Rudeineh, accused Israel of laying further obstacles to peace.

"We consider this a real violation for every single effort that has been exerted in the last several months," he said. "This policy is going to ruin everything. Nobody will be ready to move this issue. This is completely unacceptable."

Palestinian officials say they are looking forward to a visit in the coming days by the U.S. special envoy for the Middle East, George Mitchell. The Palestinians say they are hoping for an announcement that Washington will step up the pressure on Israel to halt construction in the settlements.

Some analysts say announcement by Israel comes as disappointment grows among both Israelis and Palestinians over Washington's approach to the conflict.

"The Israeli peace camp, as well as the Arab peace camp, is losing trust in the United States and in President Obama and what looked like a very positive and promising momentum that was started back in June in Cairo has been already lost," said Akiva Eldar, a senior political columnist at Tel Aviv's Haaretz newspaper. "Something quite dramatic has to happen in order to give people again some hope that it is not business as usual."

In his landmark speech from Cairo in June, President Obama said there can be no progress toward peace without a halt to settlement construction. Israel at the time said it hoped the speech would lead to a new era of reconciliation between Arabs and Israelis.

Nearly 300,000 Israelis live in the West Bank settlements, which are on lands captured by Israel in the 1967 Arab Israeli war.

The West Bank has never been formally annexed by the Jewish State.

Israeli proponents of the settlements say the existence of the communities is necessary for the survival of the Jewish State. They say Israeli disengagement from the area would make it easier for Palestinian militants to attack Israel like those in Gaza have been doing since Jewish settlers evacuated the Strip in 2005. (VoaNews)

Israel Faces International Pressure Over Settlements

Israel is facing international pressure over its settlement activity, with both the European Union and Russia saying such activity threatens the chance for Mideast peace.

The EU issued a statement Tuesday calling on Israel to stop what it called provocative actions in East Jerusalem, including home demolition and evictions. The EU said such actions are illegal under international law.

Israeli authorities are planning to build some 20 new apartments in East Jerusalem's Sheikh Jarrah neighborhood.

Russia also weighed in on the issue, with a foreign ministry spokesman calling for an end to settlement construction in line with the roadmap for peace.

Israeli Deputy Foreign Minister Danny Ayalon responded to the criticism Tuesday, saying Israel has the right to build anywhere in Jerusalem.

Israel has rejected repeated U.S. calls for a total halt to all settlement activity.

Tuesday, Israeli Deputy Prime Minister Dan Meridor said such calls contradict past "oral understandings" between the two nations that permitted Israel to build within the construction lines of existing settlements.

Meridor also urged Palestinians to return to negotiations, despite their demand that talks not resume until settlement activity is stopped.

Meanwhile, Israeli officials say Jewish settlers cut down trees belonging to Palestinian farmers in the West Bank village of Burin Tuesday. Extremist settlers have vandalized Palestinian property in the past to protest Israel's removal of unauthorized outposts in the West Bank.

Also Tuesday, Israeli Foreign Minister Avigdor Lieberman arrived in Brazil at the start of a 10-day Latin America tour that Israel says is aimed at countering Iran's growing influence in the region.

There was no immediate reaction from Israeli officials to a report in Israel's Haaretz newspaper which quoted Valter Pomar, a leading member of the country's ruling Workers party as calling Lieberman a "fascist" and a "racist."

(Voa News)

Negev (Israel) - Daratan Tertua di Bumi

Ilmuwan Israel mengklaim dataran tertua di Bumi ada di Gurun Negev yang masih masuk ke wilayah negara tersebut. Hasil pengukuran menunjukkan batu-batuan yang membentuk daratan tersebut berumur 1,8 juta tahun.

Dengan usia setua itu, daratan luas yang rata, keras, dan kering tersebut mengalahkan rekor yang dicatat daratan di Gurung Nevada, AS. Seperti dilansir situs American Association for the Advancement of Science (AAAS), usianya empat kali lebih tua daripada daratan tertua di Gurun Nevada.

Meski demikian, daratan tertua bukan berarti mengandung material yang juga paling tua di muka Bumi. Banyak batu-batuan yang umurnya jauh lebih tua daripada daratan tersebut.

"Permukaan yang kami temukan mirip sekali dengan daratan luas di Sahara dan gurun-gurun Arabia," kata Ari Matmon dari Universitas Hebrew Jerusalem yang melaporkan hasil penelitiannya dalam GSA Bulletin.

Ia memperkirakan, daratan luas yang datar dan kering itu terbentuk akibat aktivitas tektonik yang lambat. Batuan yang membentuk sangat tahan dari perubahan cuaca sehingga tetap bertahan selama jutaan tahun.

(Kompas)

Israel Menerima Kesepakatan Perdamaian?

Israel akan menerima baik kesepakatan perdamaian menyeluruh dengan Palestina yang akan menghasilkan penyelesaian dua negara. Sementara Palestina akan mencoba melobi Presiden Amerika Serikat Barack Obama terkait solusi itu.

Wakil Menteri Luar Negeri Israel Daniel Ayalon mengatakan tradisi demokratis negaranya merupakan prinsip yang berkelanjutan. Sehingga, ia berjanji akan mematuhi semua komitmen pemerintah sebelumnya.

“Termasuk menerima peta jalan damai yang akan mengarah kepada penyelesaian dua negara," kata Ayalon sebagaimana dikutip Haaretz, Senin (4/5/2009).

Ayalon merujuk kepada rencana perdamaian 2002, yang didukung masyarakat internasional. Anggota partai Israel Beiteinu, yang dipimpin Menteri Luar Negeri Avigdor Lieberman itu telah menyatakan hal tersebut sebelum serangkaian kegiatan diplomatik yang melibatkan pemimpin tinggi Israel di negara Amerika Serikat dan Eropa.

Sementara Perdana Menteri Israel Benjamin Netanyahu dijadwalkan akan mengunjungi Washington akhir bulan ini. Ia sejauh ini belum secara terbuka mengesahkan negara Palestina dan mengatakan ia akan memusatkan perhatian pada peningkatan ekonomi Palestina di Tepi Barat Sungai Jordan.

Palestina sendiri menuntut Netanyahu mendukung penyelesaian dua negara yang didukung kuat oleh Gedung Putih. Presiden Palestina Mahmoud Abbas, mengatakan akan memberitahu Obama akhir bulan ini agar mensyaratkan Israel menyetujui solusi dua negara.