JERUSALEM, March 31 (UPI) -- The United States asked Israel to freeze construction in exchange for U.S. efforts to get Palestinians to engage in talks directly, an Israeli official said.
An official in Jerusalem said the U.S. officials called for a four-month freeze in housing construction in East Jerusalem, including the Jewish neighborhoods of Neve Yaakov, French Hill and Ramat Shlomo, Haaretz reported Wednesday. Israel's recent announcement of new housing construction sparked tensions between Israel and the United States.
Under the U.S. proposal, the freeze would last four months, the time frame the Arab League authorized for indirect talks between the Palestinian Authority and Israel. Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas already agreed to indirect talks, facilitated by the United States, with Israeli Prime Minister Binyamin Netanyahu.
Abbas also has refused to face-to-face meetings with Israeli negotiators as long as Israel didn't freeze settlement construction activity in disputed areas.
If Netanyahu agrees to construction freeze for four months, direct talks could take place between the two sides during the four-month period, U.S. officials said.
