The Obama administration and its international allies are in a race to protect what is left of the Middle East peace process in the last weeks before Donald Trump takes office, at a time when US-Israeli relations have reached their lowest point in decades.

The strongly worded UN security council resolution passed on Friday demanding an end to settlement building in the West Bank has provoked a furious response from Israel, which has vowed not to comply and to punish diplomatically the countries that voted in favour of the statement.