U.S. says no to new construction in E. Jerusalem in bid to keep talks alive

By Nir Hasson, Natasha Mozgovaya (Washington) and Barak Ravid
Haaretz.com

The White House made clear in a statement yesterday that it opposes new Israeli construction in East Jerusalem. "Neither party should engage in efforts or take actions that could unilaterally preempt, or appear to preempt, negotiations. Rather, both parties should return to negotiations without preconditions as soon as possible," White House spokesman Robert Gibbs said in a statement.

Gibbs was referring to the plan to build 692 housing units in the Jewish neighborhoods of Neveh Yaakov, Har Homa and Pisgat Ze'ev in East Jerusalem.

According to a senior official in Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu's bureau, "everything was carried out with transparency vis-a-vis the Americans, even if there are disagreements." The official added that Netanyahu has said that construction would not be restricted in Jerusalem.

Over the past few days, foreign diplomats have asked government officials and Ir Amim, a public affairs group focusing on Israeli-Palestinian relations in Jerusalem, for explanations about construction tenders for hundreds of apartments over the Green Line in the capital.

According to the tenders, 377 units are to be built in Neveh Yaakov, 198 in Pisgat Ze'ev and 117 in Har Homa. They are additions to tenders published two years ago, or tenders published in the past that were not acted on.

Housing and Construction Minister Ariel Atias said yesterday that the United States had been informed about the move before it was published and that Israel was not "thumbing its nose" at the world.

"Jerusalem is the capital of Israel," Atias said. "There have always been sensitivities. We are certainly considerate, but we are also considerate of the residents of Jerusalem and the lack of housing."

Atias said a construction plan had recently been approved for 500 housing units for Palestinians in Silwan, East Jerusalem. But Haaretz has found that the plan Atias was referring to was really a declaration of general principles by Jerusalem Mayor Nir Barkat. In that declaration, high-rise construction would be allowed in part of Silwan and illegal construction would be retroactively approved.

"This is not a plan," said Haim Erlich, coordinator of policy development for Ir Amim, adding that there had been no blueprints, boundaries or authorizations. Sources in the Jerusalem municipality said it was indeed hard to compare the two plans; the test will be whether the outcome is the same in both cases.

A senior State Department official said special U.S. envoy George Mitchell had protested strongly about new construction in East Jerusalem. The official said such declarations by Israel were detrimental to peace efforts.

In his statement, White House spokesman Gibbs said the United States "recognizes that Jerusalem is a deeply important issue for Israelis and Palestinians, and for Jews, Muslims, and Christians." But he said that the United States believes "that through good-faith negotiations the parties can mutually agree on an outcome that realizes the aspirations of both parties for Jerusalem and safeguards its status for people around the world."

Meanwhile, the Jerusalem municipality is also reportedly planning to renew the Atarot industrial zone in East Jerusalem. The city plans to ask the Israel Airports Authority to take over the abandoned airfield at Atarot. The city also plans to move its garbage-disposal facility there and encourage the opening of industrial enterprises.

Jerusalem councilman Meir Margalit said a U.S. diplomat had told him that the Americans see the Atarot plan as harmful to the Palestinians because the airfield is earmarked for them.