Clinton: U.S. "insulted" by Israel; ADL: We´re shocked of Clinton reaction

Clinton: U.S. 'insulted' by Israel's settlement announcement

In an interview with CNN aired Friday night, United States Secretary of State Hillary Clinton said Israel's announcement of new construction of homes in a Jewish neighborhood in East Jerusalem was "insulting" to the United States.

Earlier Friday, Clinton had telephoned Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and expressed frustration over Israel's announcement on Tuesday of new settlement construction, a move that deeply embarrassed visiting U.S. Vice President Joe Biden and imperiled U.S. plans to launch indirect negotiations between Israel and the Palestinians.

"I mean, it was just really a very unfortunate and difficult moment for everyone -- the United States, our vice president who had gone to reassert our strong support for Israeli security -- and I regret deeply that that occurred and made that known," Clinton said during the CNN interview.

While Clinton did not blame Netanyahu personally for the announcement, she said "He is the prime minister. Like the president or secretary of state ... ultimately, you are responsible."

During her phone call to Netanyahu earlier on Friday, Clinton told Netanyahu that his government sent a "deeply negative signal" by taking steps which undermined renewed Middle East peace talks.

State Department spokesman P.J. Crowley said Clinton told Netanyahu the announcement was a "deeply negative signal about Israel's approach to the bilateral relationship ... and had undermined trust and confidence in the peace process."

"The secretary said she could not understand how this happened, particularly in light of the United States' strong commitment to Israel's security," Crowley said.

"She made clear that the Israeli government needed to demonstrate not just through words but through specific actions that they are committed to this relationship and to the peace process," he said.

Clinton's rebuke of Netanyahu capped a week of tense exchanges between the United States and Israel, which on Tuesday announced it was building 1,600 new settler homes in an area of the occupied West Bank it annexed to Jerusalem.

The announcement infuriated the West Bank-based Palestinian leadership, which threatened to pull out of U.S.-brokered indirect "proximity" talks with Israel that Washington hoped would be the first step toward relaunching full peace negotiations after more than a year.

Another senior U.S. official said Friday that Netanyahu's political standing is "perilous" because of divisions within his coalition over efforts to pursue peace with the Palestinians.

The official, speaking on condition of anonymity because of the sensitivity of the matter, predicted "a dicey period here in the next couple days to a couple of weeks" as Washington tries to get the indirect talks launched.



ADL 'stunned' by U.S. condemnation of Israel

The U.S. based Anti-Defamation League said late Friday that it was "stunned" by Clinton's "dressing down" of Israel.

"We cannot remember an instance when such harsh language was directed at a friend and ally of the United States," said Abraham Foxman, director of the Anti-Defamation League (ADL), in a statement.

The ADL called Clinton's remarks a "gross overreaction" to a "policy difference among friends."

"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," Foxman said.

[link to www.haaretz.com]