2010-11-09 12:48:34

Israel plans 1,300 settlements in East Jerusalem


The Israeli government has announced that it is pushing ahead with plans to build 1,300 new apartments for Jewish families in Arab East Jerusalem, despite fierce opposition from Palestinians.

The announcement came as Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu is in the United States to speak to leaders about reviving Middle East Peace Talks that stalled in September, when Israel ended a moratorium on settlement building in the West Bank.

Speaking to Vatican Radio, director of the Israeli-Palestinian Centre for Research and Information, Gershon Baskin, says that the Israelis and Palestinians view these settlements differently.

“These are considered by Israel not to be settlements but neighbourhoods of Jerusalem in the areas of east Jerusalem that we annexed by Israel in 1967 by international law, and of course, as the Palestinians see it, there is no difference between these settlements and any other settlement anywhere in the West bank”

“The Israelis are saying that it won’t make any difference to the permanent status agreement if Israel builds these additional houses in these two neighbourhoods in Jerusalem because from Israel’s point of view, these houses will remain under Israel’s sovereignty.” RealAudioMP3








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