Israel triggered a fresh rift with Washington over settlement building on Tuesday by approving the building of 900 homes for Jews on West Bank land it occupied in a 1967 and annexed to its Jerusalem municipality. A government planning commission approved the addition of 900 housing units at Gilo, where 40,000 Israelis already live. The Israeli decision drew an usually sharply worded rebuke from the White House, which said it was “dismayed” and accused Israel of undermining President Barack Obama's efforts to resume peace talks with Palestinians stalled since December. “At a time when we are working to relaunch negotiations, these actions make it more difficult for our efforts to succeed,” White House Press Secretary Robert Gibbs said. In his statement, Gibbs also said the U.S. objected to continued evictions and demolitions of Palestinian homes in East Jerusalem. Nabil Abu Rdaineh, aide to Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas, said Israel's move “destroys the last chances for the peace process”. EU rejects Palestinian statehood appeal The European Union (EU) rejected requests Tuesday that it support a Palestinian plan for gaining recognition as an independent state at the UN Security Council without Israeli consent. Sweden's Foreign Minister Carl Bildt, whose country holds the rotating EU presidency, told reporters “the conditions are not there as of yet” for such a move.
