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Source: http://www.jpost.com/Israel/Article.aspx?id=191160
Israeli Official: Settlement Construction Moratorium "An Artificial Issue"
(Jerusalem Post) Herb Keinon - Despite PA rejection of Prime Minister Netanyahu's proposal to extend the settlement construction moratorium if the Palestinian leadership recognized Israel as a Jewish state, an Israeli official said Tuesday that the "ball is still in play, this is still a work in process." "If the Palestinians are willing to engage seriously in a process of give and take, Israel is willing to show flexibility," the official said. "But it has to be a process of give and take, not demand and take." The official said the whole moratorium matter was an "artificial issue." The vast majority of construction is in large settlement blocs that Israel would retain in any agreement. The amount to be built outside the major settlement blocs is minuscule and not going to change anything, he added. "No settlement growth in the coming year would influence the final map of peace, so for that reason this is an artificial issue," he explained.