ISRAEL APPROVES NEW 2,268 SETTLEMENT UNITS IN W. BANK
Al Quds, 20 Jumadil Awwal 2014/21 March 2014 (MINA) – An Israeli committee on Thursday approved building permits for 2,269 settlement units for the Ariel, Shvut Rachel and Shavei Shomron settlements, in the occupied West Bank.
According to Yediot Aharonot newspaper, the committee approved validation of 1,015 housing units in Leshem, Beit El and Almog settlements, according to Anadolu Agency report quoted by Mi’raj Islamic News Agency (MINA).
Some 1,254 units have also been approved for the Ariel, Shvut Rachel and Shavei Shomron settlements, the newspaper said. The constructions must get a final approval from Defense Minister Moshe Ya’alon.
No official statement has yet been issued by the committee. Washington-sponsored peace talks were resumed last July after a three-year hiatus.
Palestinians insist that Israeli settlement building must stop before a comprehensive Israeli-Palestinian final-status agreement can be reached.
Both the U.N. and the U.S. consider Israeli settlement activity on occupied Palestinian land to be a breach of international law.
Meanwhile, the Palestinian Authority (PA) says the so-called peace talks between Palestinians and Israelis have reached an impasse due to Israel’s settlement activities.
“Israel’s settlement activity caused the negotiations to fail and led them to an impasse,” Nabil Abu Rudeina, a spokesman for acting PA chief Mahmoud Abbas, said on Thursday.
The comments came after an Israeli official said the Tel Aviv regime had progressed with plans for more than 2,000 new settler units in six settlements in the occupied West Bank.
Guy Inbar, a spokesman for the Israeli Ministry of Military Affairs’ unit responsible for civilian affairs in the Palestinian territories, announced the news earlier in the day. He said a ministry committee had furthered existing plans for 2,269 homes at a meeting last month.
The last round of Israeli-Palestinian talks broke down in 2010 after the Tel Aviv regime refused to halt its settlement construction.
US Secretary of State John Kerry brokered the negotiations between Israelis and Palestinians after a three-year gap. Kerry has given the two sides a nine-month deadline to reach a deal.
He has called on the PA to extend talks with Israel beyond April. The PA says extending talks with Israel beyond the April deadline is conditioned on a moratorium on Israel’s settlement constructions in the occupied territories. (T/P04/E01)
Mi’raj Islamic News Agency (MINA)
