Israel allowing PA to set up shop in east Jerusalem
Israel has quietly agreed to allow the Palestinian Authority to open official institutions in east Jerusalem, a senior Palestinian Authority official told WorldNetDaily.
Government spokesman Mark Regev did not explicitly deny the charge, saying “The Prime Minister’s position on Jerusalem is clear. Jerusalem will remain the united capital of Israel.”
Separately, another spokesman at the Prime Minister’s Office confirmed to WND that in recent meetings, President Obama’s envoy to the Middle East, George Mitchell, pressed Netanyahu to freeze Jewish construction in east Jerusalem as a confidence-building measure to begin direct talks with PA President Abbas. U.S.
Abbas had publicly stated he would not start direct negotiations with Israel unless a Jewish construction freeze was imposed in east Jerusalem.
Speaking to WND, the Netanyahu official said the prime minister rejected any construction freeze in east Jerusalem, but was honoring a US request to allow the PA to open institutions in Jerusalem.
Dmitri Ziliani, a spokesman for the Jerusalem division of Fatah, said the Palestinian government had opened several offices in Jerusalem in recent months and had resumed regular meetings there, according to WND. He reiterated that the Palestinians will not make peace with Israel unless they gain full control over the entire eastern half of the city.
According to Israeli law, however, the PA cannot officially open institutions in Jerusalem. The PA previously used Orient House as its de facto headquarters in Jerusalem, but the building was shut down in 2001 following a series of suicide bombings in the capital.
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