Israeli building ban ends
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As the 10-month settlement freeze expired on Sunday, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu is considering a number of options to substitute for the moratorium and keep the direct talks with Palestinians on track.
Sources close to Netanyahu told Xinhua early Monday that the premier and his ministers estimate that the Israeli government and the Palestinian National Authority could reach a compromise on the settlement freeze before Oct. 4, when the Arab League's monitoring committee will convene to decide whether direct peace talks should continue after the settlement freeze is over.
Israeli officials are now discussing the possible formulas with the United States as well as the PNA, but have not reached any agreement so far.
The first alternative weighed is resuming the construction of structures which have already been approved before announcing another moratorium for several months.
There are an estimated 1,500 to 2,500 structures whose construction will be approved. It is an offer which sources estimate the Palestinians may agree to, but is regarded unacceptable by Israel, since its implication will be "life coming to a halt" in the West Bank and will prevent any possible construction.
The second alternative is renewing construction in the large settlement blocs and extending the freeze in isolated communities. So far, with the exception of a few Israeli ministers, both Israel and the Palestinians do not accept this initiative due to the gap in defining the settlement blocs and the isolated communities.
While, according to one definition, the settlement blocs are spread over 13 percent of the territory and include the Jordan Valley, another definition determines that the settlement blocs comprise only 4 percent of the West Bank.
A third alternative is the announcement of another moratorium while establishing a government apparatus for approving construction in a controlled manner on the basis of natural growth. It is estimated that from a political aspect, it will be hard for Netanyahu to gain support for such a move.
But under certain circumstances, especially if the apparatus will be managed by right-wing ministers, it may be possible to gain approval for such a decision. It is yet unclear if the Palestinians will accept such an offer.
It is estimated that the political struggle around the construction moratorium is still not over, and that Netanyahu will sooner or later have no choice but to convene his cabinet or government in order to gain approval for the compromise formula that will be selected and accepted by both sides.
Israeli Defense Minister Ehud Barak is also pushing for a compromise and presenting the government ministers with a decision which will essentially continue the moratorium one way or another.
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