This is infuriating. Eastern Jerusalem is sovereign Israel territory. We don’t need an excuse for building there as we see fit. Netanyahu can claim all he wants that Jerusalem is the undivided capital of Jerusalem or stipulate that he won’t impose a freeze on construction there but his actions belie his words. He has been cowed by the international community. He has virtually stopped building there and needs an excuse to do so. No doubt Obama has agreed to the 1500 units he so violently opposed in his first term in exchange for Netanyahu agreeing to the prisoner release. There should be no linkage. We should defy the world and build where we want. Bibi has also agreed to only build in areas we expect to keep, thereby imposing a freeze on the rest. Bibi has compromised our sovereignty and rights. Ted Belman
PM announces four building projects in conjunction with Israel’s release of 26 long-serving Palestinian prisoners; says gov’t to okay tenders for 1,500 housing units over Green Line in Ramat Shlomo. Netanyahu speaks at the Knesset during a special Yom Kippur War ceremony on October 15, 2013.
Israel was planning to advance four building projects in east Jerusalem as “compensation” for the overnight release of 26 Palestinian prisoners, Israeli media cited Prime Minister Binyamin Netanyahu as saying.
Netanyahu made the announcement, as was expected alongside the much-contested freeing of 21 long-serving Palestinian prisoners to the West Bank, and five to Gaza.
Shortly after the second of four prisoner releases to the Palestinian Authority was completed in the early hours of Wednesday morning, Netanyahu said the government planned to approved tenders for the construction of 1,500 additional housing units in the east Jerusalem neighborhood of Ramat Shlomo.
In addition, he said current owners of apartments in Ramat Shlomo would be allowed to expand their homes with another room to the size of 50 square-meters.
During talks with Interior Minister Gideon Sa’ar, approval was also received for the establishment of a visitor’s center near the City of David National Park in Silwan.
The premier said plans would also be advanced for the previously-halted construction of a national park on the slopes of Mount Scopus, which would allegedly block the expansion of Arab neighborhoods in the area.
In July, the cabinet approved the release of 104 Palestinian prisoners in Israeli jails in four stages. Israel released 26 of those prisoners in August.
Israel’s agreement to release the prisoners was a key factor in the PA’s decision to begin direct negotiations with Israel.
Prior to July, it had refused to hold direct talks with Israel until it halted West Bank settlement activity and Jewish building in east Jerusalem.
Ted, you are absolutely right. There’s nothing more to say. The annexation of East Jerusalem was not annexation if we have to let out 20+ Arab murderers in order to have justification to build there. I agree with Hotovely and Prowisor (great writer btw) — it’s shameful and does not benefit Israel in the slightest! There has to be a citizen’s uprising to remind Netanyahu what his constituents think!
Jews have lowered themselves like animals to the level of the Arabs in which a “blood payment” can wipe out the effects of murder.
And this is being delivered in the name of “peace” along with a bribe of more Jewish settlement construction that will never happen.
Above all, the most appalling aspect of the national humiliation we have again witnessed is that it could have been avoided in the first place.