US State Department: Israeli settlement policy is provocative

The diplomatic initiatives showed that the “status quo can’t be sustained”, he added, reiterating the need for Israel to “stop all settlement activities” in order to give “credibility to any peace process”.

Netanyahu’s office did not respond to the statement. The global community did not recognize the annexation of East Jerusalem by Israel in 1967.

Israeli soldiers stationed at military watchtowers targeted Palestinian farmers along the eastern borderline part of Johr Addik neighborhood, in eastern Gaza city, with heavy machine gunfire, and prevented them access to their agricultural land. In March 2010, during a visit by Vice President Joe Biden, a tender issued for the construction of a housing project in Gilo sparked a mini-crisis between the two allies.

Israel has repeatedly rejected the French initiative in favor of direct bilateral talks.

The spokesperson for Fatah-affiliated prisoners and former prisoners Nashat al-Wahidi said that the decision revealed the “ugly terrorist face” of the Israeli government, and warned that the move signals an increase in “racist Israeli policies targeting the lives of Palestinian prisoners”.

“Nobody in Israel views Gilo as a settlement, but once the administration demands a freeze in Gilo, then no Palestinian leader can demand anything less”, he said.

Israeli military forces Saturday opened their heavy machine gunfire toward Palestinian farmers along the borders with Israel, according to WAFA correspondent. Since then, Israel has built 125 Jewish-only housing settlements – considered illegal under global law – across Area C, according to B’Tselem figures.

Palestinian Football Association officials also pointed out that they had dealt with similar problems in previous matches, including running into challenges getting all the players past Israeli-controlled checkpoints within the West Bank when players compete with other West Bank teams, according to Haaretz.

United Nations figures published previous year showed that Israeli authorities approved just 1.5 percent of all requests for building permits submitted by Palestinians between 2010 and 2014.

US State Department spokesman told reporters Thursday that “the secretary is not looking at trying to make progress based on a fixed date on the calendar”. “They are a violation of the Geneva convention, which specifically prohibits the occupying power from transferring people in the areas it is occupying”.

Israel has full control of planning and building matters in these areas defined under the Oslo Accords, and refuses to recognise these communities. Moreover, the IDF recently admitted that when it comes to demolitions in the West Bank, “enforcement against Palestinians is hundreds of percentage points higher [than against Jews]”.