This administration is so fast and harsh in criticizing our Jewish allies yet the picture of measured restraint when talking about our Islamist enemies.

Washington (AFP) – The White House delivered an extraordinary public rebuke to Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu on Monday, after he said US criticism of Israeli settlement building ran counter to “American values.”

It was another turn for the worse in the tense relationship between President Barack Obama’s administration and Netanyahu, amid deepening fallout from a meeting between the two leaders last week.

After those talks at the White House, Washington strongly condemned reported Israeli plans to give the go-ahead for thousands more settler homes in East Jerusalem, prompting Netanyahu to return fire in an interview broadcast on US television Sunday.