Palestinians pray during Friday prayers as the Jewish settlement of Maale Adumim is seen in the background, on a hilltop next to the West Bank Jewish settlement of Qedar, Friday, June 5, 2009. Israel will not heed US President Barack Obama’s powerful appeal to halt all settlement activity on lands the Palestinians claim for a future state, officials said Friday. The government plans to allow construction inside existing West Bank settlements to accommodate for growing families, said the officials, explaining a position that looks sure to cause a serious policy clash with the United States. (AP Photo/Dan Balilty)
The call is to halt activity even on territory that the Palestinians don’t seriously claim for a future state, unless you think that their claims have suddenly expanded to include most of Israel – which, in fairness, they may have. And a serious policy clash is at least a couple rungs below “sure,” with both the US and Israel stepping back even though Obama’s demands are far to the left of the Israeli political spectrum. But other than that this is a really concise and defensible caption and not at all filled with pro-Obama, anti-Israel agitprop.
Plus the photo kind of sucked, even before I blew it up to fit at the top. (h/t: Boker Tov Boulder).
References and previously after the jump…
References:
* Mideast Conflict [AP]
* Thoughts on the Obama Peace Process [Pollak / Commentary]
* Abbas: Olmert Offered Us The West Bank And The Right Of Return, But It Wasn’t Good Enough [MR]
* US official: Settlement deal possible [JPost]
* Israel plays down latest US criticism [AFP]
* Obama and a Settlements Freeze [Rosen / MEF]
Previously:
* AP: Poor, Downtrodden Palestinians Leaving Their Beloved Homeland
* AP: British Diplomat Who Screamed For Israel To Be Wiped Out Was "Criticizing Israel’s Conduct" (Plus: British Anti-Semitism Now Kind Of An Everyday Thing)
* AP’s Ibrahim Barzak Publishes Least Subtle Anti-Israel Bias Yet
