The Israeli municipality in occupied Jerusalem has approved the construction of 24 homes in the middle of an Arab neighborhood in the city’s occupied eastern sector, settlement watchdog Peace Now said on Tuesday.
The Israeli municipality in occupied Jerusalem has approved the construction of 24 homes in the middle of an Arab neighborhood in the city's occupied eastern sector, settlement watchdog Peace Now said on Tuesday. "The building and planning committee has authorized the construction of 24 homes in four buildings," Hagit Ofran told AFP, saying the new settler homes would be built in As Suwwana, which lies just east of Jerusalem's Old City, at the foot of the Mount of Olives. "The building belongs to a foreign company but the request for construction permits was presented by an affiliate of Elad, a settler group which is very active in Arab areas of east Jerusalem," she said. Peace Now's Ofran described the decision as "a new provocation brought about by the government of (Israeli Prime Minister) Benjamin Netanyahu and the Jerusalem municipality." The municipality confirmed the project, with spokesman Elie Isaacson saying that new construction in occupied Jerusalem was "essential to the development of the city" and that plans were approved on the basis their “legality”.Israel Approves 24 New Homes in Ossupied East Jerusalem
