White House: Halt New Jerusalem Housing

The White House has weighed-in on the announcement of tenders being issued for 700 new housing starts in Jerusalem. Spokesman Robert Gibbs told reporters on Monday that the U.S. “opposes new Israeli construction in east Jerusalem,” because “The status of Jerusalem is a permanent status issue that must be resolved by the parties through negotiations and supported by the international community.” Successive Israeli governments have been clear in excluding building in the nation’s capital from restrictions it accepted in the Road Map peace plan to build on land acquired in the 1967 war. Sweden, presently holding the rotating presidency of the European Union, also criticized the building plans, calling Israeli building in Jerusalem “illegal.”