U.S. slams proposed Israeli bill on settlementsNovember 15, 2016 - 09:26 AMT PanARMENIAN.Net - The United States on Monday, November 14 described as "troubling" an Israeli bill supported by a ministerial committee allowing settlers in the occupied West Bank to remain in homes built on private Palestinian land and said it hoped the law does not pass, Reuters reports. "We are deeply concerned about the advancement of legislation that would allow for the legalization of illegal Israeli outposts located on private Palestinian land," State Department spokeswoman Elizabeth Trudeau told a briefing. If the law were enacted it could pave the way for the legalization of dozens of illegal outposts deep in the West Bank, she said, adding: "This would represent an unprecedented and troubling step that's inconsistent with prior Israeli legal opinion and also break longstanding policy of not building on private Palestinian land," Trudeau said. The U.S. believes settlements endangered prospects for a two-state solution and Israeli-Palestinian peace, she said. "We hope it doesn't become law," Trudeau added. The ministerial committee defied Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and voted on Sunday to back the bill, which will be debated by parliament on Wednesday and is still some distance from becoming law. Israel's attorney-general, Avihai Mandelblit, has called the bill legally flawed in its current form, saying that it contravened private property rights legislation and did not tally with Israel's international law commitments. Photo: AFP/ Getty Images Top stories Authorities said a total of 192 Azerbaijani troops were killed and 511 were wounded during Azerbaijan’s offensive. In 2023, the Azerbaijani government will increase the country’s defense budget by more than 1.1 billion manats ($650 million). The bill, published on Monday, is designed to "eliminate the shortcomings of an unreasonably broad interpretation of the key concept of "compatriot". The earthquake caused a temporary blackout, damaged many buildings and closed a number of rural roads. Partner news | Russia warns Armenia against “falling into West’s trap” Zakharova maintained, however, that anything that will benefit the people of Armenia can only be welcomed. CSTO: Armenia has not participated in secretariat’s work recently Recently Armenia has not participated in the work of the secretariat of the CSTO, Imangali Tasmagambetov said. Meeting with U.S., EU not against third parties, says Armenia The meeting scheduled for April 5 is dedicated to strengthening of the Armenia-EU-US cooperation, Yerevan added. Ucom launches network modernization efforts in few regions of Armenia In particular, on March 28, the legacy Mobile Switching Subsystem will be replaced with a new one. |