By Gwen Ackerman and Jonathan Ferziger March 10 (Bloomberg) — Vice President Joe Biden said Israel and the Palestinians will be held “accountable” for actions jeopardizing peace efforts, such as Israeli approval of a plan for new homes in east Jerusalem. “As we move forward the United States will hold both sides accountable for any statements or actions that inflame tensions or prejudice the outcome of talks, as this decision did,” Biden said in the West Bank town of Ramallah after meeting Palestinian Authority President Mahmoud Abbas . Israel’s announcement yesterday of plans to build 1,600 new homes was the second construction plan approved this week in areas sought by Palestinians for a future state, and comes as Biden seeks to revive peace talks. Palestinian leaders, who refused to talk directly to Israel because of continued building in the West Bank, this week agreed to a U.S. proposal for indirect negotiations. Israel also agreed to the talks. “I call on Israel to halt settlement activities and stop imposing facts on the ground,” Abbas said in Ramallah. He said Israel shouldn’t “waste the opportunity to make a real peace and allow efforts by President Barack Obama and George Mitchell to succeed.” Biden yesterday condemned Israel’s plan to build in east Jerusalem, saying it threatened to undermine peace efforts. The last round of peace talks collapsed in 2008 when Israel launched a military initiative in the Gaza Strip in what it said was a bid to stop rocket attacks on its southern towns and cities. To contact the reporters on this story: Gwen Ackerman in Jerusalem at gackerman@bloomberg.net ; Jonathan Ferziger in Jerusalam and Ramallah at 1200 or jferziger@bloomberg.net .
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Biden Says Israel, Palestinians to Be Held Accountable for Peace Obstacles
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