Israel has no cause to celebrate because Arabs "are groaning" under the Jewish communities in Judea and Samaria, Palestinian Authority (PA) Prime Minister Salam Fayyad charged Tuesday in a speech to legislators and foreign envoys. He accused Jewish "settlers" of "crimes" and termed the Jewish presence a siege.

Fayyad, who is heavily supported by the Bush administration that helped put him in power, was unusually harsh in his criticism of Israel. He made the remarks in a speech marking the "nakba," Arabic for "catastrophe," the word used by Arabs to term Israel's Independence Day.