...an organization which on balance has done more bad than good, with the good not done well and the bad done thoroughly...
after Israel announced plans for 1,500 new settler homes in response to the formation of a Hamas, always the voice of sweet reason,-backed unity government.
The new government of technocrats is recognized by both the European Union
...the successor to the Holy Roman Empire, only without the Hapsburgs and the nifty uniforms and the dancing...
and the United States but Israel has vowed to boycott what it says is a "government of terror" supported by its Islamist foe.
The tenders were unveiled by the Israeli housing ministry overnight, just 48 hours after the swearing in of the unity government ending seven years of rival administrations in the West Bank and Gazoo.
The move drew a furious reaction from the Paleostinians, who pledged to turn to the U.N. Security Council for an anti-settlement resolution for the first time in more than three years.
Of the 1,500 new homes, 400 will be in Israeli-annexed east Jerusalem and the rest in the occupied West Bank.
"I welcome the decision to give a fitting Zionist response to the establishment of the Paleostinian government of terror," said Housing Minister Uri Ariel of the far-right Jewish Home party, describing the new homes as "just the beginning."
Hanan Ashrawi, a senior member of the Paleostine Liberation Organization (PLO), said the Paleostinian leadership would seek U.N. intervention to bring Israel to account for the new settlement expansion drive.
"The executive committee of the PLO views this latest escalation with the utmost of seriousness and will counter it by addressing both the U.N. Security Council and the General Assembly as the proper way of curbing this grave violation and ensuring accountability," she said.
The last time the PLO sought a Security Council resolution against the settlements was in February 2011, but the move -- which was widely supported -- was blocked by a US veto.
| All the recent moves there, and the funding of Hamas through the new "unity" government, makes it an open question whether the U.S. would veto this time... |
"The Paleostinian leadership is looking seriously into going to international courts against settlement activity," he said.
The option of legal action against Israeli settlement building at the
International Criminal Court... where Milosevich died of old age before being convicted ...
in The Hague opened up after the Paleostinians won observer state status at the United Nations in 2012.
But they agreed to hold off on any such recourse for the duration of US-brokered peace negotiations with Israel, which collapsed earlier this year with Washington saying persistent settlement expansion played a major part.
"It is time to hold Israel accountable in front of international organizations," chief negotiator Saeb Erakat told AFP. "Those who fear the international courts should stop their war crimes against the Paleostinian people, first and foremost of which is settlement activity."
| Apparently Israel doesn't fear the international courts. Can't imagine why... |
"It is time for the American administration to take serious steps against what the government of Israel is doing," said Nimr Hammad, an adviser to President the ineffectual Mahmoud Abbas
... a graduate of the prestigious unaccredited Patrice Lumumba University in Moscow with a doctorate in Holocaust Denial...
.
"This decision affirms that ... Netanyahu is a liar and is not interested in the two-state solution," he told AFP, accusing him of pushing the Paleostinians into a corner. "Netanyahu wants to push the Paleostinians into one of two options: either a confrontation, or .. to go to the United Nations."
Erakat said the new tenders heralded a "major escalation".
"We believe this latest announcement is a clear sign that Israel is moving towards a major escalation, such as new settlement construction, the annexation of occupied territory and forcible transfer," he said.
Since Monday, several hardline ministers have called for Israel to respond to the new government by annexing large swathes of the West Bank.
In a speech at the weekend, Abbas acknowledged Israel would seek to "punish" the Paleostinians for agreeing on a government with Hamas, but warned there would be "a proper response" for every move.