US ambassador to Israel condemns government settlements policy

The US ambassador to Israel criticized Israel's West Bank settlement policies at a high-profile security conference Monday, a rare public rebuke from Israel's top ally that drew an angry response from Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, ABC News reported Monday.

Daniel Shapiro said that Washington was "concerned and perplexed" over Israel's strategy of building West Bank settlements.

Speaking to the annual conference of the Institute for National Security Studies, a top Israeli think tank, he said Israel's continued expansion of settlements raises questions about Israel's intentions and its stated commitment to establishing an independent Palestinian state.

Shapiro added that Israel had also legalized some West Bank outposts despite pledges to the United States not to do so.

As Israel's closest friend, the United States is steadfast in its support for Israel but it was also its role to call Israel out on its errors, Shapiro said.

He noted that Israel restricts Palestinian economic development in the West Bank and, despite its recent indictment against the suspects in a deadly arson attack against a Palestinians family, bemoaned what he called an inadequate response to settler violence.

"Too much vigilantism goes unchecked and at times there seem to be two standards of adherence to the rule of law: one for Israelis and another for Palestinians," he said.

Source: MENA