Israel authorities are expected to advance plans to build 9,000 new housing units in an illegal settlement.
It has been criticised as it damages the likelihood of a sovereign Palestinian state being established.
Last week, Israel’s security cabinet signed off on plans to formalise 19 illegal settlements across the West Bank.
Israel Advances Plan To Build 9000 New Housing Units In An Illegal Settlement
Criticism has been directed at the aim of blocking development in a key area and further damaging the likelihood of a sovereign Palestinian state being established
Summary
Israeli authorities are expected to advance plans to build 9,000 new housing units in an illegal settlement on the site of the abandoned Qalandiya airport in occupied East Jerusalem, in another attempt to cut off Palestinian lands from each other and block any possibility of a contiguous Palestinian state ever emerging.
“The Israeli occupation authorities are seeking to implement a dangerous settlement plan on the lands of Jerusalem International Airport and neighboring areas,” the Jerusalem governorate said in a statement.
It considered the plan “a direct threat to geographical and demographic links between Jerusalem and the city of Ramallah.”
The so-called Atarot neighbourhood in northern East Jerusalem, is to be discussed and have its outlines approved on Wednesday by the District Planning and Building Committee, according to Israeli group Peace Now.
It has been pointed out how building an Israeli enclave in an area where hundreds of thousands of Palestinians live in close proximity, furthers the aim of blocking development in a key area and further damaging the likelihood of a sovereign Palestinian state being established.
This plan is reminiscent of the internationally condemned E1settlement plan, which would see the construction of thousands of illegal Israeli homes in the occupied West Bank.
Last week, Israel’s security cabinet signed off on plans to formalise 19 illegal settlements across the West Bank.
The project was among several East Jerusalem settlement schemes frozen during the presidency of Barack Obama, but has found momentum after Donald Trump has come to power in the US.
The Jerusalem Governorate has said that it will raise the issue with the international community and human rights organisations, describing the project as a clear violation of international law, including the Fourth Geneva Convention, and multiple United Nations resolutions that deem Israeli settlements in occupied territory illegal.
With inputs from Al Jazeera and other agencies.
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