The U.S. yesterday backed Israel's right to build Jewish settlements in the occupied West Bank by abandoning a four-decade-old position that they were "inconsistent with international law," a stance that will probably make Israeli-Palestinian peace even more unlikely, the Reuters website reports today (November 19, 2019).
The announcement by Secretary of State Mike Pompeo was a victory for Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, who is struggling to remain in power after two inconclusive Israeli elections this year, and a defeat for the Palestinians.
It appeared to to deliver a new blow to Trump's efforts to resolve the Israeli-Palestinian conflict through a peace plan that has been in the works for more than two years.
Pompeo's announcement drew praise from Netanyahu, who said it "rights a historical wrong," and condemnation from Palestinian negotiator Saeb Erekat, who said Washington was threatening "to replace international law with the 'law of the jungle.'"
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