Israel backs away from Jerusalem settlement vote

Israel stepped back from approving hundreds of new homes in East Jerusalem on Wednesday, ahead of a speech by US Secretary of State John Kerry on the Obama administration’s vision for Middle East peace.

According to CNN, the city council in Jerusalem canceled a vote to approve the construction of 492 units — such as homes, synagogues and other public buildings — in areas of East Jerusalem annexed by Israel.

Council member Hanan Rubin, a member of the city’s zoning committee, said the decision followed a request from Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu.

It came days after the United Nations Security Council passed a resolution condemning Israel’s settlements in the occupied West Bank and East Jerusalem and as Kerry prepared to give his speech on Wednesday.

“The municipality regards housing in Jerusalem as a municipal need rather than a political action, and therefore there is no need to vote on this on a sensitive day when John Kerry is to give a speech,” Rubin said. “We don’t want to be a part of a political controversy.”

The reason behind Netanyahu’s call for the city council’s vote to be canceled remains unclear, and the vote could still come before the city council’s zoning committee in the future.