[AP] Amy Teibel - The U.S. is pressuring Israel to declare a complete freeze on West Bank settlement construction, rejecting Israel's long-standing policy of expanding existing communities, Israeli government officials say. Israel maintains that it should be allowed to build housing in settlements to account for the "natural growth" of the existing population. President Bush has signaled that he would support Israel's position that it retain some settlements under a final peace deal. According to the UN, 450,000 Israelis live in the West Bank and east Jerusalem, territories Israel captured in the 1967 Mideast war.
2007-11-19 01:00:00Full ArticleBACK Visit the Daily Alert Archive