Israeli settlements construction hurts security

Israeli chief negotiator and Justice Minister Tzipi Livni on Monday slammed several of the Israeli cabinet's actions which she said would thwart the possibility of reaching peace with the Palestinians. In a conference held in Tel Aviv and organized by the Calcalist economic daily, Livni said that Israel's settlements in the West Bank and east Jerusalem "are not part of Israel's security; rather, they are hurting it," the daily reported. Livni referred to Israel's reported intention to soon announce more housing units in the settlements on territories Israel annexed in the 1967 Mideast War and are slated to be part of a future Palestinian state. She said that the establishment of outposts risks the safety of Israeli soldiers who defend them and costs significant funds. "It's impossible to explain how on one hand we talk about two states for two peoples and on the other hand we continue to build in the settlements," Livni said, warning that if Israel continues its current policies it may be outcast in the international community. Livni also slammed hawkish right-wing members of the government, among them Defense Minister Moshe Ya'alon and hawkish Foreign Minister Avigdor Lieberman, who repeatedly say there is no partner on the Palestinian side for peace. "I'm angry with those who are happy whenever they can say there is no peace partner, so they tell us 'don't even try... even if there was a partner, we should not give up any land,'" she added. Livni also talked about the clear-cut connection between Israel 's economy and the Israeli-Palestinian conflict and said that the conflict was the Israeli economy's glass ceiling. Regarding the bill that was approved by Israeli ministers on Sunday to de-facto annex the Jordan Valley, to the ire of the Palestinians and against what is proposed in the U.S. security arrangements plan, Livni slammed it and announced she would appeal it.