US ambassador blame Israeli settlements in the occupied West Bank

US Ambassador to Israel Dan Shapiro voiced a particularly sharp attack against Israeli settlements in the occupied West Bank on Monday, accusing Israeli authorities of holding them to different standards of law.

He expressed the unusually harsh criticism during a speech at the Institute for National Security Studies (INSS) conference in Tel Aviv.

"We are concerned and perplexed by Israel's strategy on settlements," Shapiro stated. "This government and previous Israeli governments have repeatedly expressed support for a negotiated settlement that would involve mutual recognition and separation."

"Yet separation will become more and more difficult if Israel continues to expand settlements," he asserted.