This article is from the source 'nytimes' and was first published or seen on . It last changed over 40 days ago and won't be checked again for changes.

You can find the current article at its original source at http://www.nytimes.com/2016/12/28/world/middleeast/israel-un-resolution-jerusalem-settlements.html

The article has changed 7 times. There is an RSS feed of changes available.

Version 4 Version 5
Israel Postpones Vote on New Housing Ahead of Speech by John Kerry Israel Postpones Vote on New Housing Ahead of Speech by John Kerry
(about 1 hour later)
JERUSALEM — Israeli leaders postponed plans on Wednesday to move ahead with new housing in East Jerusalem, just hours before Secretary of State John Kerry was scheduled to deliver a much-anticipated speech outlining an American vision for peace with the Palestinians.JERUSALEM — Israeli leaders postponed plans on Wednesday to move ahead with new housing in East Jerusalem, just hours before Secretary of State John Kerry was scheduled to deliver a much-anticipated speech outlining an American vision for peace with the Palestinians.
The Jerusalem city planning committee, reportedly acting at the behest of the national government, canceled at the last moment a scheduled vote on permits for 618 new housing units in the predominantly Palestinian eastern section of town. Army Radio reported that the delay came at the request of Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu. The Jerusalem city planning committee, which was reported to be acting at the behest of the national government, canceled at the last moment a scheduled vote on permits for 618 new housing units in the predominantly Palestinian eastern section of the city. Members of the committee said the delay came at the request of Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu.
The decision came after days of furious protests by Mr. Netanyahu and other Israeli officials against the United Nations Security Council, which passed a resolution condemning Israeli settlements as a flagrant violation of international law. The measure passed 14 to 0, with the United States abstaining rather than vetoing, as it has on other occasions. The decision came after days of furious protests by Mr. Netanyahu and other Israeli officials against the United Nations Security Council, which passed a resolution on Friday condemning Israeli settlements as a flagrant violation of international law. The measure passed 14 to 0, with the United States abstaining rather than vetoing, as it has on other occasions.
Mr. Netanyahu has accused President Obama and Mr. Kerry of secretly orchestrating the “shameful” resolution. His aides say they have “ironclad information” proving the plot, and that they plan to turn it over to the administration of President-elect Donald J. Trump. While Mr. Netanyahu’s office would not say whether it was involved in the postponement of the new East Jerusalem housing, a senior Israeli official left the impression that it conformed to the prime minister’s wishes.
While the prime minister has no authority over the municipal planning commission, the official said, he has indicated to cabinet members that he did not want to provide the Obama administration in its waning weeks any reason to promote additional Security Council resolutions.
Mr. Netanyahu has accused President Obama and Mr. Kerry, who leave office in three weeks, of secretly orchestrating the “shameful” resolution. His aides say that they have “ironclad information” proving the purported plot, and that they plan to turn it over to the administration of President-elect Donald J. Trump.
Obama administration officials have strongly denied the accusation. Palestinian officials said on Wednesday that a supposed Egyptian memo reporting a collaboration with Mr. Kerry before the vote was fake.Obama administration officials have strongly denied the accusation. Palestinian officials said on Wednesday that a supposed Egyptian memo reporting a collaboration with Mr. Kerry before the vote was fake.
Mr. Netanyahu was so angry about the resolution that he summoned the United States ambassador to castigate the Obama administration and retaliated against other members of the Security Council by canceling diplomatic visits, recalling envoys and cutting back financial aid. Mr. Trump, who has named a settlement advocate as his ambassador to Israel, opposed the Security Council resolution and expressed additional support for Israel’s government on Twitter on Wednesday before Mr. Kerry’s speech.
In the hours before the vote, he told the foreign minister of New Zealand, one of the sponsors of the resolution, that its passage would be “a declaration of war” against Israel, according to Israeli daily Haaretz. “We cannot continue to let Israel be treated with such total disdain and disrespect,” Mr. Trump wrote. “They used to have a great friend in the U.S., but not anymore. The beginning of the end was the horrible Iran deal, and now this (U.N.)! Stay strong Israel, January 20th is fast approaching!”
The units scheduled for Wednesday’s vote had been on the agenda since before the resolution, and for their part, Jerusalem officials had vowed to proceed with the new homes as a show of defiance. The deputy mayor, who leads the planning committee, has said they would be the first installment on 5,600 additional homes in East Jerusalem and he promised not to be deterred by the United Nations. Mr. Netanyahu wrote a quick response: “President-elect Trump, thank you for your warm friendship and your clear-cut support for Israel!” He included American and Israeli flag emoji at the end of the message.
Mr. Netanyahu’s office did not immediately comment on the postponement, but at least one member of his cabinet suggested that some people in the prime minister’s party were worried about going too far in attacking the United States, which under Mr. Obama just agreed to a record $38 billion, 10-year security aid package. The housing units scheduled for Wednesday’s vote had been on the agenda since before the resolution, and for their part, Jerusalem officials had vowed to proceed with the new homes as a show of defiance. The deputy mayor, who leads the planning committee, has said they would be the first installment on 5,600 additional homes in East Jerusalem, and he promised not to be deterred by the United Nations.
Yisrael Katz, who is both the transportation minister and the intelligence minister, echoed Mr. Netanyahu’s criticism of what he called “an extreme step” by the Security Council but added that Israel needs the United States and must treat it with respect. Even as attention focused primarily on the postponement of the initial 618 units, an advocacy group critical of Israeli settlement policy noted that the same municipal committee on Wednesday approved a four-story building on a vacant plot in East Jerusalem as part of what it called a takeover campaign by a settler organization. Hundreds of Palestinian residents face possible eviction, according to the group, known as Ir Amim.
Mr. Netanyahu was so angry about the United Nations resolution that he summoned the American ambassador to castigate the Obama administration and retaliated against other members of the Security Council by canceling diplomatic visits, recalling envoys and cutting back financial aid.
In the hours before the vote, he told the foreign minister of New Zealand, one of the sponsors of the resolution, that its passage would be “a declaration of war” against Israel, according to the Israeli newspaper Haaretz.
At least one member of Mr. Netanyahu’s cabinet suggested that some people in the prime minister’s party were worried about going too far in attacking the United States, which under Mr. Obama just agreed to a record $38 billion, 10-year security aid package.
Yisrael Katz, who is both the transportation minister and the intelligence minister, echoed Mr. Netanyahu’s criticism of what he called “an extreme step” by the Security Council but added that Israel needed the United States and must treat it with respect.
“Without the United States, we have no status in the international organizations,” he told Israeli news outlets.“Without the United States, we have no status in the international organizations,” he told Israeli news outlets.
But other allies of the government lashed out at Mr. Kerry for presuming to offer a peace plan over Israeli objections.But other allies of the government lashed out at Mr. Kerry for presuming to offer a peace plan over Israeli objections.
“John Kerry is a stain on American foreign policy that is ignorant of the issues,” Oded Revivi, the chief foreign envoy of the Yesha Council, which represents Israeli settlers in the West Bank, said in a statement. “He has chosen to eternalize his legacy as the worst secretary of state in history that chose to stab his closest ally in the back while rivers of blood flowed like water across the Middle East.”“John Kerry is a stain on American foreign policy that is ignorant of the issues,” Oded Revivi, the chief foreign envoy of the Yesha Council, which represents Israeli settlers in the West Bank, said in a statement. “He has chosen to eternalize his legacy as the worst secretary of state in history that chose to stab his closest ally in the back while rivers of blood flowed like water across the Middle East.”
Gilad Erdan, the minister of public security, mocked Mr. Kerry on Twitter. “Biting my nails in anticipation of Kerry’s formula for solving the conflict,” he wrote. “Will 100 years of bloody confrontations with the Arabs in Israel end after the secretary of state reveals to us what we need to do?”Gilad Erdan, the minister of public security, mocked Mr. Kerry on Twitter. “Biting my nails in anticipation of Kerry’s formula for solving the conflict,” he wrote. “Will 100 years of bloody confrontations with the Arabs in Israel end after the secretary of state reveals to us what we need to do?”
Mr. Kerry, who remains frustrated by a failed peacemaking effort in 2014, will use the speech on Wednesday to describe what he considers a way toward resolving the conflict between Israelis and Palestinians, according to his team.Mr. Kerry, who remains frustrated by a failed peacemaking effort in 2014, will use the speech on Wednesday to describe what he considers a way toward resolving the conflict between Israelis and Palestinians, according to his team.
He will also respond to what he considers misleading criticism from the Israelis, and argue that neither the resolution nor the abstention was unprecedented.He will also respond to what he considers misleading criticism from the Israelis, and argue that neither the resolution nor the abstention was unprecedented.
Israeli leaders have objected to what they consider outside parties trying to impose a solution on the conflict, and the United States is not the only target of their anger. In recent days, they have increasingly objected to a planned peace conference France intends to hold on Jan. 15, five days before Mr. Obama leaves office.
Israel’s defense minister, Avigdor Lieberman, earlier this week called it “a modern-day Dreyfus trial,” referring to the 19th-century French conviction of a Jewish Army captain for treason in what was widely seen as a case study in anti-Semitism.
“There’s only one difference,” Mr. Lieberman said. “This time, instead of the defendant being one Jew, it will be the entire nation of Israel and the State of Israel.”
French officials rejected the idea that they were plotting against Israel. “I think what we are observing here is the usual tactic of overemphasizing all sorts of threats with the purpose of killing any new attempt for a diplomatic action in the field,” said a French official, speaking on the condition of anonymity according to diplomatic protocol.