Obama administration rejects Netanyahu backtrack on two-states

[eridani]

16. Netanyahu Now Says He Was Only Kidding About No Palestinian State, Obama Unimpressed

http://readersupportednews.org/news-section2/318-66/29173-netanyahu-now-says-he-was-only-kidding-about-no-palestinian-state-obama-unimpressed

Israeli prime minister Benjamin Netanyahu has denied rejecting the eventual creation of a Palestinian state, backing away from pre-election comments that deepened a rift with Israel's ally the United States.

On the eve of this week's general election, Mr Netanyahu ruled out the establishment of the Palestinian state if he was re-elected.

But the White House, unmoved by Mr Netanyahu's post-election effort to backtrack, delivered a fresh rebuke against the Israeli leader and signalled that Washington may reconsider its long-standing policy of shielding Israel from international pressure at the United Nations.

"I haven't changed my policy. I never retracted my speech in Bar-Ilan University six years ago calling for a demilitarized Palestinian state that recognizes the Jewish state," Mr Netanyahu said in an interview with MSNBC two days after winning the bitterly contested election.

"What has changed is the reality," Mr Netanyahu said, citing the Palestinian Authority's refusal to recognise Israel as the homeland of the Jewish people and the Hamas militant group's continued control of the Gaza Strip.