State Dep't BS

Following an earlier report, second portion, that East Jerusalem neighborhoods were to be frozen,

State Dept. clarifies Jerusalem settlement issue

Jewish housing in eastern Jerusalem is not part of the Obama administration's demand for a settlement freeze, the State Department clarified.

"As far as Jerusalem is concerned, our policy in Jerusalem has not changed," State Department spokesman Ian Kelly said Tuesday in his daily briefing. "Jerusalem is a final-status issue. Israel and the Palestinians have agreed to resolve this status during negotiations."

On Monday, Kelly had said that the administration's demand for a stoppage of settlement construction included Jewish neighborhoods in eastern Jerusalem.

This is obfuscation.

For the very same reason, "Jerusalem is a final-status issue", the State Dept. does not enter "Israel" as the "state" where "Jerusalem" is found on birth registration, death certificates and American passports. And that "Jerusalem" includes the territory of both east and west Jerusalem. In other words, Ramat Eshkol, French's Hill, Har Choma, etc., are, at present, "settlements" in the eyes and minds of the State Dept., equal to Judea and Samaria in status.

So who are they kidding?

So much BS.