Pretending to promote justice, while working to continue, and refine, the practice of injustice. [theCode] In photo, U.S. President Barack Obama walks on the red carpet with Israel's President Shimon Peres (L) and Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu (R) during an official welcoming ceremony at Ben Gurion International Airport near Tel Aviv March 20, 2013. Obama arrived in Israel on Wednesday without any new peace initiative.
From [HERE] Negotiations between Israel and the Palestinians finally topped the agenda on the second day of US president Barack Obama's visit to the region, as he urged both sides to resume negotiations but also pushed the Palestinians to drop a longstanding demand that Israel halt illegal settlement construction in the occupied West Bank.
Obama delivered two different messages, in tone and substance, to his two audiences on Thursday. Speaking in Ramallah with Palestinian Authority (PA) president Mahmoud Abbas, he urged the PA to drop its focus on settlements and return to talks without preconditions. He criticised the settlement drive, calling it not "constructive" or "appropriate," though he stopped short of calling it illegal. [MORE]