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State Department Intervening Repeatedly with Israel on Minor Palestinian Issues

[Ha'aretz ] Barak Ravid - Senior officials in the U.S. State Department, including Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice, have repeatedly complained to Israel recently over relatively minor Palestinian issues that it would have ignored until a few months ago, Israeli officials say. One such case occurred two weeks ago, when the daughter of Palestinian parliamentarian Hanan Ashrawi sought to visit Israel. After several years of living in the U.S., her residency in eastern Jerusalem had lapsed. Assistant Secretary of State David Welch phoned senior Israeli officials to demand they intervene. Another case involved an eviction order issued to an eastern Jerusalem family over nonpayment of rent. Officials from the U.S. consulate visited the family and the State Department demanded that Israel prevent the eviction. The stunned Israelis responded that the eviction had been upheld by the High Court of Justice. Moreover, they said, this was an internal affair. A senior Israeli official said the person behind this growing American criticism is the U.S. consul in Jerusalem, Jacob Wallace. "Every week, he receives dozens of complaints from Palestinians and transfers them to Washington without examination," the official said. "He's really inflaming the atmosphere."
2008-07-22 01:00:00
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