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An A-O Special Report

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Rift Develops Between U.S. & Israel

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(A-O Newswire) - Last week, a diplomatic rift developed between the Obama administration and the Netanyahu government of Israel. The following series of reports provides the details which stemmed from Vice President Joe Biden's visit to Israel last week and an Israeli announcement that 1,600 building permits would be extended to Eastern Jerusalem, despite a previous demand from Washington that all building permits and construction be halted. As we've later learned from insider sources, Washington was a buzz with rumors that the Vice President and Israeli Prime Minister Netanyahu were so angry that they came close to a fist fight.

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We'll also have more analysis and details on the Biden trip and what transpired afterward and an analysis of the situation and how it has developed all in our donor's section at The A-O Insider Report - in the next edition of The A-O Intelligence Digest for 3-15-10 due to be published on Monday, 3-15-10.

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We'll start our coverage here with the initial announcement of the building permits and then follow up with what happened after Biden returned to the United States.

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On the eve of U.S. Vice President Joe Biden's arrival in Israel, the Israeli government announced approval of 1,600 new homes in the disputed region of East Jerusalem. The White House was quick to denounce the move in hopes that the Palestians would not balk at plans for indirect peace talks with Israel. The U.S. denouncement failed in its purpose.

Israel's Interior Ministry approved the building of 1,600 new housing units in Ramat Shlomo, with a ministry official saying the plan will expand the ultra-Orthodox East Jerusalem neighborhood to the east and to the south.

The Palestinian Authority responded to the announcement stating that Israel's decision to approve new East Jerusalem houses effectively prevents any peace negotiations from taking place. More on this story that appears to be a deal-breaker for peace talks - LINK HERE.

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United States Secretary of State Hillary Clinton lashed out verbally at Prime Minister Binyamin Netanyahu on Saturday, berating him for announcing building plans in Jerusalem during the visit of US Vice President Joe Biden. During a 43-minute phone conversation between the two, Clinton told Prime Minister Netanyahu that the announcement, which Israel has said was not intentionally coordinated with the diplomatic visit of Biden, was embarrassing for the United States.  She said the incident may imperil a recent joint decision between the Arab League and the United States to reignite talks between Israel and the PA.

In a Friday interview with CNN, Clinton called Israel's building announcement "insulting" to the United States, and reaffirmed the US commitment to the "two-state solution." "I mean, it was just really a very unfortunate and difficult moment for everyone," said Clinton, "and I regret deeply that that occurred and made that known."

Following Clinton's phone call diatribe, Prime Minister Netanyahu called the leaders of Italy and Germany to discuss what had happened.  He assured them that regulations would be put in place to prevent such an occurrence in the future.  More details, LINK HERE. additional details - LINK HERE.

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Prime Minister Binyamin Netanyahu convened his top ministers for a meeting Saturday evening to discuss the fallout of an announcement on construction in Jerusalem made during the visit of US Vice President Joe Biden.

During Biden’s visit, the Interior Ministry announced that 1,600 housing units will be built in Jerusalem’s Ramat Shlomo neighborhood. Biden initially condemned the move but on Thursday said that after Netanyahu apologized to him the crisis was behind them.

Secretary of State Hillary Rodham Clinton, however, called Netanyahu on Friday and scolded him over the incident.

Saturday evening, the Anti-Defamation League took the administration to task saying in a statement it was “shocked and stunned” by Washington’s “public dressing down” of Israel.

The ADL said a daily briefing by Assistant Secretary of State P.J. Crowley was especially harsh when Crowley said Israel "undermined trust and confidence in the peace process, and in America's interests" when it announced the housing in Ramat Shlomo.

“We cannot remember an instance when such harsh language was directed at a friend and ally of the United States.  One can only wonder how far the U.S. is prepared to go in distancing itself from Israel in order to placate the Palestinians in the hope they see it is in their interest to return to the negotiating table,” ADL National Director Abraham L. Foxman said.
 
More details, LINK HERE.

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Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu expressed regret on Sunday for the diplomatic row that resulted from an Israeli announcement that it would issue 1,600 new building permits in East Jerusalem. The announcement of the permits happened to coincide with the arrival last week of US Vice President Joe Biden and triggered a diplomatic rift between the two nations.

The Vice President had traveled to Israel to lay the ground work for indirect peace talks and the announcement of building permits wrecked U.S. plans to restart peace talks. The Israeli PM's office claimed the announcement was made without approval of Netanyahu and was simply a bureaucratic blunder. Even so, Netanyahu made no indication that he would rescind the program. His office indicated that it would be several years before any such permits would be actionable and thus was much ado about nothing. The Israeli view is that the incident was merely an unfortunately timed event that should never have happened in the first place.

Despite the Prime Minister's response, the Obama Administration remains incensed over the insult created by the announcement. The U.S. responded, first with a sharp rebuke from Biden while in Israel. It was followed on Friday by a heated phone conversation between the Prime Minister and Secretary of State Hillary Clinton. The incident appears to have produced a dramatic diplomatic rift between the two nations. For more details on Netanyahu's initial public response, LINK HERE.

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At issue between the Obama Administration and Israel is the President's desire to divide Jerusalem and give part of Jerusalem to the Palestinian Arabs. This is why the diplomatic rift developed last week as Israeli bureaucrats announced 1,600 new building permits for East Jerusalem would be granted.

More details, LINK HERE.

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US Defense Secretary Robert Gates made a sudden emergency trip to Saudi Arabia, cutting short a visit to Afghanistan. The reason for the trip was to explain to Saudi Arabia what was going on between the US and Israel concerning a rift between the two nations at a time when Iran is on the verge of producing a nuclear weapon.

The meeting in Riyadh with King Abdullah was not a pleasant one for the US defense chief. For confirmation of the trip, LINK HERE.  The A-O Intelligence Digest will have additional details on the meeting as it related to not only Iran but also to what is perceived to be a developing rift between Israel and the United States.

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