According to a report released on Sunday in Yediot Achronot, Defense Minister Ehud Barak this week in meetings in Washington, DC, will offer a three-month construction freeze in all yishuvim throughout Yehuda and Shomron, offering to succumb to President Barak Obama’s demands to halt construction, despite the critical need for additional housing in those communities.

Barak will be meeting with Mideast envoy George Mitchell in an effort to reduce tensions between Jerusalem and Washington.

Yediot also points out that special envoy Yitzchak Molcho was dispatched by Prime Minister Binyamin Netanyahu last week, meeting with Mitchell, but he returned empty handed. That was the reason for last week’s cancelation of the meeting in Paris between Netanyahu and Mitchell.

Alternatively, Netanyahu has suggested the meeting with Barak, seeking to extricate himself from the deadlock with the White House.

Barak is expected to offer a total cessation of construction with the exception of large communities, where some 2,000 units are in advanced stages of construction, to be completed. This includes primarily public buildings. Aides to the prime minister are hoping this compromise will be deemed acceptable by the White House, which is unrelenting in its calls to halt construction, seemingly preoccupied with the notion that the building of a home in Shilo, Efrat or Elon Shvut is the reason the PA (Palestinian Authority) cannot reach a peace agreement with Israel.

Israel is seeking to continue building to accommodate the natural growth in yishuvim, which Baruch Hashem is moving at an impressive rate, without further straining ties with America. Despite grandiose statements of ideology and the like, the prime minister in actuality appears unwilling to address the national agenda, but appears more determined to appease the White House and Labor Party coalition partner.

Barak of course will also stress Israel’s efforts to ease security restrictions on PA residents and improve the PA economy.

Minister Gilad Erdan (Likud) and Eli Yishai (Shas) have already released statements that if the report is accurate, Barak should be aware he will not enjoy the required support among ministers to accept such a plan.

In response to Barak’s trip to Washington, MKs of the Ichud HaLeumi opposition party on Sunday are visiting outposts in the Gush Etzion areas to encourage continued construction. The MKs will also stop in Betar Illit.

(Yechiel Spira – YWN Israel)