Region | Palestinian Territories

Britain's Brown urges Israel to freeze settlements

British Prime Minister Gordon Brown urged Israel on Sunday to stop settlement expansion on occupied land, saying it was slowing down the peace deal.

  • Agencies
  • Published: 18:48 July 20, 2008
  • Gulf News

West Bank: British Prime Minister Gordon Brown urged Israel on Sunday to stop settlement expansion on occupied land, saying it was slowing down the peace deal.

Brown's visit to Israel and the Palestinian territories is his first as prime minister.

"Settlement expansion has made peace harder to achieve. It erodes trust. It heightens Palestinian suffering. It makes the compromises Israel will need to make for peace more difficult," he said.

At a news conference with Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas in the West Bank city of Bethlehem, Brown said Britain wanted Israel to freeze Jewish settlement building.

He also announced $60 million in new aid to the Palestinians and urged "those who are part of the negotiations...to move the talks forward."

Citing obstacles such as settlement building, Abbas said an agreement this year would require "a tremendous effort."

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