Israel, US differ on Palestine: Ehud

HELD AL-QUDS: Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu says he'll deliver a major policy address next week in the wake of repeated U.S. calls for a freeze in West Bank settlement construction. Netanyahu has said a complete halt to settlement construction will be impossible. But President Barack Obama appears unwilling to compromise on the issue. Speaking before Sunday's weekly Cabinet meeting, Cabinet minister Yisrael Katz said Israel cannot end ``normal life'' in the settlements. He said he hopes the Americans will respect past, unofficial understandings to allow at least minimal construction to continue. On Friday, U.S. Secretary of State Hillary Rodham Clinton said Obama would not recognize any unofficial understandings of the past.However, Defence Minister Ehud Barak said there are differences between the US and Israel on various issues including Palestine; however, the ties with the US are very strong.