The United States has been accused of destroying the Middle East peace process after signalling it could accept the expansion of Israeli settlements.
"I do not believe that America says now that settlements can be expanded. This thwarts and destroys the peace process," Palestinian Prime Minister Ahmed Qurie told reporters yesterday.
Until now, the United States had demanded a freeze on building all Jewish settlements on land occupied in the 1967 Middle East war. The communities are seen as illegal by most of the world, though Israel disputes this.
Palestinian Prime Minister Ahmed Qurie
But the Bush administration signalled flexibility on Saturday on some limited growth in West Bank settlements to help Israeli Prime Minister Ariel Sharon as he tries to get a plan for withdrawal from occupied Gaza past his far right.
According to comments made by Israeli political sources today, it plans to build more than 530 new settler homes in the West Bank after Washington signalled it would accept growth in Jewish enclaves in the occupied territory.
They said the construction would be mostly in settlements
close to Jerusalem and would be in full swing before the end of the year.
Palestinians, who fear uprooting the Gaza settlers is a cover for strengthening Israel's hold on bigger West Bank enclaves, said the United States was tearing up its own peace "road map" - a blueprint for a Palestinian state that has been stalled by violence.
"For the United States to take such positions . . . can only damage the peace process, if it exists, and damage the whole situation and make it more difficult," Arab League Secretary-General Amr Moussa told reporters in Cairo.
The White House denied any official change in the US stance, although an official said efforts were under way to clarify with the Israelis what "settlement activity" means.
Based on this new understanding, officials said Washington could agree to new construction provided it did not take place outside the boundaries of existing settlements.
A senior Israeli source said there was a clear understanding that the United States was trying to help Sharon push through his plan for "disengagement" from nearly four years of conflict with the Palestinians.
Palestinian Prime Minister Ahmed Qurie
Mr Sharon on Sunday took another step towards implementing his Gaza pullout plan by opening an office to discuss compensation with settlers.
His unilateral initiative involves removing all the 8,000 settlers from Gaza and several hundred of the more than 230,000 settlers in the West Bank by the end of next year. Officials have said settlers may receive as much as $300,000 per family.
Hardliners in Likud, which was long opposed to ceding any land, say giving up Gaza would "reward Palestinian terrorism".
Israeli sources said Mr Sharon would now pursue contacts on forming a coalition with ultra-Orthodox Jewish parties - but might woo Labour at a later date.