I often get questions about U.S. policy on settlements (pre-Trump), and specifically, whether any U.S. president  ever referred to settlements as “illegal.” This Q&A summarizes…

“For decades, U.S. presidents have sought to avoid the I-word, fearing it would needlessly antagonize Israel. Even President Jimmy Carter—perhaps the most pro-Palestinian occupant of the White House in 50 years—steered clear of using the word, though he did make it clear that Israel’s construction of Jewish settlements on land inhabited by Arabs before the 1967 Arab-Israeli War was ‘contrary to the Geneva Convention, that occupied territories should not be changed by the establishment of permanent settlements by the occupying power.’ ‘The use of ‘illegal’ was clearly an official expression of Carter administration policy, even if Carter didn’t shout out the word in a speech,’ according to Lara Friedman, the president of the Foundation for Middle East Peace. But Carter’s administration likely went further than any other U.S. administration in asserting the illegality of settlements. Friedman, who compiled a detailed modern history of presidential positions on settlements, said it was President Ronald Reagan who first proposed a freeze on new settlements in an effort to promote peace. Reagan, however, never characterized them as illegal. Presidents George W. Bush and Barack Obama issued calls for an end to Israel’s occupation of Arab lands seized since 1967—but didn’t call them illegal.”

Op-ed by Lara Friedman, originally published by Jewish Currents on February 20, 2020. _ A NEW WEAPON has been unveiled in the battle to quash activism…

Original Text of the Trump Plan FMEP Analysis: > Annexation of Settlements & Land > In A Single Line, U.S. Vision Obliterates Palestine Property Rights > U.S. Vision…

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