West Bank settlement of Shiloh gets initial approval for 600 new homes

Move threatens to raise tensions with the U.S. as Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu prepares to head to the White House next month.

By The Associated Press

The Defense Ministry gave preliminary approval on Tuesday to a plan to build 600 new homes in Shiloh, a hardline settlement deep inside the West Bank. The move drew rebukes from the United Nations and Palestinians, and threatened to raise tensions with the United States as the prime minister prepares to head to the White House.

Israeli officials played down the decision, saying it was made by a low-level planning committee under the control of the Defense Ministry, and that construction was years away at best.

But the timing of the move may further hinder Mideast peace efforts. It casts a shadow over a trip by Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu to Washington in March, in which he is expected to discuss Iran's nuclear program and other regional issues.

The United Nations' Mideast envoy, Robert Serry, called the announcement "deplorable" and said it "moves us further away from the goal of a two-state solution."

in full: http://www.haaretz.com/print-edition/news/west-bank-settlement-of-shiloh-gets-initial-approval-for-600-new-homes-1.414215