London - The European Union expressed dismay at the Israeli government's decision to build more Jewish settlements on the disputed West Bank.
"We are disturbed by today's reports of further Israeli settlement building in the West Bank," Britain's Foreign Office said on behalf of the 15 members of the EU. Britain holds the EU presidency.
"This development is particularly damaging at a time when the US, the EU and the international community are intensifying their efforts to achieve a breakthrough in the peace process," the junior minister, Mr Derek Fatchett, said.