THE MIDDLE EAST: The Israeli government has issued tenders for building 1,000 homes in West Bank settlements, prompting a US call for Israel to abide by the road map peace plan, which calls for a freeze on settlement construction.
In the West Bank city of Nablus, meanwhile, an eight-year-old boy was killed in unclear circumstances, while two militants were shot dead in the Gaza Strip.
Most of the construction is slated for four large settlements - Ariel, Betar Illit, Karnei Shomron and Ma'aleh Adumim. While the Prime Minister, Mr Ariel Sharon, says he plans to evacuate all settlements in the Gaza Strip by the end of 2005, he has also said he wants to hang on to large blocs of settlements in the West Bank.
The Absorption Minister, Ms Tzipi Livni, said the move was "at the heart of the Israeli consensus," suggesting that a majority of Israelis believed the areas where construction is planned should ultimately remain part of Israel after an agreement with the Palestinians. "There shouldn't be a problem with anyone," Ms Livni added, in what appeared to be a reference to possible US dissatisfaction with the move.
US officials, however, said yesterday that they expected Israel to fulfil its part in the road map. "Israel has accepted the road map and all its stipulations and we expect it to abide by them," Mr Paul Patin, a spokesman for the US Embassy in Tel Aviv said.
Publication of the tenders comes ahead of a meeting of the central committee of the ruling Likud party this evening, at which members will vote on whether to join forces with the opposition Labour Party in a national unity government.
Mr Sharon is keen to bring the centre-left Labour into his coalition as part of his attempt to carry out his disengagement plan, but faces strong opposition within his party and could well lose the vote.
While the ballot is not officially binding, it would further raise questions about the Israeli leader's political survival. He heads a minority coalition following the departure of right-wing elements over his withdrawal plans.
A Palestinian minister, Mr Saeb Erekat, said the tenders were "destroying the road map."
The left-wing Israeli Peace Now group, which monitors settlement expansion, released a statement saying: "Sharon has decided to scoff at his government's promise to freeze construction in settlements. Rather than disengagement, he is carrying out massive occupation in Judea and Samaria [the West Bank]."
In Nablus, eight-year-old Khaled Kusta was killed during an Israeli military operation in the city. Palestinian sources said the boy was shot during clashes between troops and youths. In Gaza, Israeli troops shot dead two militants near the settlement of Atzmona.
The Israeli Prisons Service, meanwhile, is planning to set up barbecues near the cells where more than a thousand Palestinian security prisoners have been holding a hunger strike over conditions since the beginning of the week. Officials said this was aimed at whetting the prisoners' appetites to undermine their resolve.
Other steps being employed to break the strike included halting visits for strikers and removing radios and TVs from their cells.