Netanyahu statement on Palestinian state runs against US policy: White House

The White House says Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s statement to block the creation of a Palestinian state runs against US policy, adding President Barack Obama is committed to a two-state solution for Israelis and the people of Palestine.

White House spokesman Josh Earnest made the remarks on Wednesday, two days after Netanyahu rejected the idea of a Palestinian state.

Earnest stated that "it continues to be the view of the president that a two state solution is the best way to address those tensions."

"In the context of the recent election [Israeli] Prime Minister Netanyahu indicated a change in his position, based on those comments the United States will evaluate our approach to the situation."

The White House spokesman also said that President Obama had not called Netanyahu to congratulate him on his election victory.

Netanyahu vowed on Monday that he would not allow the creation of a Palestinian state if he would another term in office.

Netanyahu clinched a victory in Tuesday’s Israeli election, final results showed Wednesday.  

With nearly all votes counted, Netanyahu’s rightwing Likud party appeared to have won 30 of the 120 seats in parliament, against 24 for rivals the center-left Zionist Union.   

The White House also slammed the Israeli prime minister’s political party for using anti-Arab rhetoric ahead of the elections.

Earnest said Washington is deeply concerned about divisive language emanating from Netanyahu's Likud party. He said the party had sought to marginalize Israel's minority Arabs.

“Rhetoric that seeks to marginalize one segment of their population is deeply concerning and it is divisive and I can tell you that these are views the administration intends to communicate directly to the Israelis," he added.

Earnest was apparently referring to social media posts by Likud members that warned Israelis about the danger of high turnout by Arab voters. 

The Obama administration is both angry at Netanyahu’s accepting the Republican invitation to address Congress on March 3 two weeks before the Israeli national election without consulting the White House and excessive Israeli lobby interference in American foreign policy.

American journalist and writer Dean Henderson told Press TV on Friday that as the Democrat US president enters his lame duck phase, and starts acting like a true Democratic leader, he is undercut by the Israel lobby by getting him involved in scandals reminiscent  of the way Bill Clinton was undone by the Monica Lewinsky scandal.

He stated that Obama has started to act “like a Democrat, especially in the realm of foreign policy, and he just needs to continue on this path.”

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