TEL AVIV, January 8, 2008, (WAFA)- In comments that threaten Israel's hold on east Jerusalem, US Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice said Tuesday that the US does not consider it legitimate for Israel to build homes in some neighborhoods of the capital which are located beyond the Green Line.

According to Israeli daily newspaper "Jerusalem post" Rice went further than US officials have previously gone toward clarifying her government's position on the matter saying "no difference between the West Bank and east Jerusalem settlements" .

Her remarks set the stage for a confrontation over the issue when Rice and US President George W. Bush visit Israel this week and try to move the peace process forward.

Israel, which annexed east Jerusalem after the 1967 war, does not equate the capital's Jewish neighborhoods over the Green Line with the settlements located in the West Bank. As such, it does not believe that construction there is bound by its obligation under the Road Map peace plan, which calls for a freeze of all settlement activity.