Israeli Cabinet ministers lined up on Sunday behind Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu's plan to approve the construction of hundreds of new apartments in West Bank settlements, defiantly shrugging off a rare and harsh public rebuke from top ally Washington. “The prime minister will decide in the coming days on the building of hundreds of additional housing unitsin order to solve existing problems in various settlements,” Transport Minister Yisrael Katz told Israel Radio. The number of new housing units to be approved could range between 400 and 700, Israeli media reported. On Friday an aide to Netanyahu had disclosed the Israeli leader's intention to authorize the new projects before considering a moratorium on new building permits. Some 2,500 housing units are currently being built in West Bank settlements and Israeli officials said their construction would continue. The White House immediately voiced regret over the new building plan and said such Israeli actions made it harder to create a climate for negotiations. US President Barack Obama has been pressuring Netanyahu to halt construction in settlements. Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas blasted the plans as “not acceptable,” while top negotiator Saeb Erakat said they “undermine all efforts exerted by the (US President Barack) Obama administration to revive peace.” Israel says a curtailment in construction would not apply to the new housing units, the 2,500 units currently under construction, or to east Jerusalem, which the Palestinians claim for the capital of a future state. Israel captured that sector of the city in 1967 and Netanyahu's hawkish coalition objects to any territorial concessions there. Washington's Mideast envoy, George Mitchell, is due in the region later this week to try to bridge differences.
