American Mid East envoy says Israel's settlement expansion not helping peace

The American Middle East envoy, Dennis Ross, has said the Israeli decision to press ahead with the expansion of Jewish settlements in the West Bank is not helpful to the deadlocked peace process.

He was speaking after meeting the Palestinian leader, Yasser Arafat, in the West Bank town of Ramallah.

Earlier, the Israeli prime minister, Binyamin Netanyahu, approved construction of almost six-hundred new houses at a settlement in Efrat and another one hundred at Al Qana.

Palestinian leaders condemned the decision, which they said was a slap in the face for American peace efforts.

From the newsroom of the BBC World Service