EU's Ashton: "Israeli Settlements are illegal, constitute an obstacle to peace and threaten to make a two state-solution impossible."

EU foreign policy chief Baroness Ashton has said Israel's decision to build new settler homes in occupied East Jerusalem endangers peace talks. She was speaking to Arab League members in Cairo, as she began a Middle East tour amid tensions over Israel's move.

Speaking in Cairo, she said: "Recent Israeli decisions to build new housing units in East Jerusalem have endangered and undermined the tentative agreement to begin proximity talks.

"The EU position on settlements is clear. Settlements are illegal, constitute an obstacle to peace and threaten to make a two state-solution impossible."

For more: BBC News - EU's Ashton chides Israel over Jerusalem settler plan