France to initiate Middle East peace plan

Francois Hollande says his country will attempt to renew regional talks following elections in Israel

By Adiv Sterman 16 January 2013, 8:30 pm Edit

Adiv Sterman is a breaking news editor at The Times of Israel.

Francois Hollande (CC-BY Jean-Marc Ayrault/Wikimedia Commons)

French President Francois Hollande said Wednesday that his country will take steps to initiate an Israeli-Palestinian peace plan immediately after Israel holds its elections on January 22, Israel Radio reported Wednesday.

The European Union is reportedly preparing a detailed new peace plan sponsored by Britain and France. The plan is expected to include a demand to freeze all construction by Israel in the West Bank.

Earlier Wednesday, France condemned Israel for what it called a “provocative and illegal” decision to expand settlement building in the West Bank, after the Housing Ministry announced tenders for 198 housing units for Jews in the West Bank.

The new tenders consist of two projects: 84 units in Kiryat Arba and 114 in Efrat, near the Gush Etzion settlement bloc, south of Jerusalem.

French officials said their country was “particularly worried by the impact of these two projects on the territorial contiguity of a future Palestinian state.”