Arab leaders say PM's 'insufficient' freeze will not pave path to peace

On a visit to Venezuela on Friday, Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas accused Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu of "choosing the occupation" over peace by freezing settlement construction in the West Bank, but not in East Jerusalem.

"The occupation will continue. Netanyahu will not agree to restart talks where they were left off. He had to decide between peace and the occupation, and regrettably he chose occupation," Abbas said in an address to the Venezuelan National Assembly.

Abbas said during his first visit to the country that "we can't accept the current Israeli government's concept for the negotiations."

Venezuelan President Hugo Chavez said his government intended to upgrade ties with the Palestinians, and to open an embassy on Palestinian territory. "We have decided to designate an ambassador and open an embassy in Palestine," Chavez said after talks with the Palestinian president. "We now have a charge d'affaires; we will name an ambassador in coming days as part of accords to boost our bilateral relations."

Egyptian and Jordanian officials also criticized Israel's limited settlement freeze in recent days. A statement issued Thursday by Egypt's Foreign Ministry called the halt in construction "an insufficient move" which fails to meet the needs of the peace process and is unacceptable to the international community.

The statement said negotiations must be based on a "clear foundation" of trust building, a condition Israel's move fails to meet.

Jordanian Foreign Minister Nasser Judeh said this weekend that the two state solution must be implemented in all of the West Bank, Gaza Strip and East Jerusalem.

"The talks must address the core issues, including the permanent borders, the refugees and security," Judeh said.

Meanwhile, the Civil Administration will finish distributing orders for the building freeze today to the heads of Jewish settlements in the West Bank.

On Friday, Civil Administration authorities distributed the injunctions to 12 regional council heads. The heads of the remaining 12 councils were given the orders last night or will receive them today. Beit El Regional Council head Moshe Rosenblum rejected the directive, calling it illegal and tearing it up in front of authorities. Beit Aryeh council head Avi Naim refused to answer telephone calls from officials to schedule a meeting.

The order prohibits the construction of new buildings in existing settlements, including buildings which have already been authorized. On Friday morning, Defense Ministry officials toured a number of settlements with a crew of photographers to document buildings for which foundations have already been laid, and which will therefore be exempted from the freeze.

Civil Administration figures indicate there are around 3,000 such buildings in West Bank settlements in various stages of construction.

"We understand the significance of the order, and the challenge standing before you as public representatives in a complex situation," Civil Administration chief Brig. Gen. Yoav Mordechai wrote to the council heads.

He wrote that as a security arm of a democratic state, the Civil Administration is "expected to implement the government's decision. It is expected from you as public representative that you operate responsibly and according to the law."