Hello and welcome to the Intelligence on Economist Radio. I'm your host, Jason Palmer.

Every weekday we provide a fresh perspective on the events shaping your world.

A head of Britain's General Election next month, the two main parties leaders met for a

televised debate last night. The format left room for little more than canned phrases,

and the question of trust in the Prime Minister became literally a laughing matter.

And the world's bars and supermarkets are bursting with new brands of gin,

many of which tout inspiration from India. But until recently, only the rot gut stuff was made there.

Now some upmarket brands are proving to be a tonic to the country's booze industry.

First up, though.

On Monday, America's Secretary of State, Mike Pompeo, announced a major policy reversal.

The establishment of Israeli civilian settlements in the West Bank is not per se inconsistent

with international law. This could have big consequences for Israel's conflict with the Palestinians.

The hard truth is, there will never be a judicial resolution to the conflict and arguments about

who is right and wrong as a matter of international law will not bring peace.

Over the past half century, Israel has built hundreds of settlements, or Jewish enclaves,

on the land it captured from Jordan in the Six Day War of 1967.

This land is claimed by Palestinians for their future state, which is why settlements are

seen by many as an obstacle to peace. The presence of over 400,000 Israeli settlers living in

the West Bank basically means that a Palestinian state cannot come into being.

Antelfeffer is our Israel correspondent based in Jerusalem.

Many of those settlements are stuck in between the main Palestinian cities and towns,

so a contiguous state cannot exist as long as they're there, and their presence also means that

...