Quartet against settlements in East Jerusalem, flays Gaza rocket fire

MOSCOW - Middle East mediators condemned for the second time in a week on Friday Israeli plans to build new settlements in disputed East Jerusalem, but the United States suggested Israel was moving to address the issue.

US Secretary of State Hillary Clinton, in Moscow for a meeting of the Middle East quartet, said Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu had given a "useful and productive" response to her concerns on the settlement issue during a telephone conversation on Thursday. She did not give details.