Israeli Media: Thousands of Settlement Units in Palestine Await Gantz’s Approval
Jerusalem, MINA – The Hebrew newspaper Yedioth Ahronoth revealed that there are new Israeli settlement plans to build thousands of housing units in the occupied West Bank and Jerusalem, which are only waiting for an approval from Israeli War Minister Benny Gantz.
The newspaper stressed that “the struggle to continue building in the settlements has reached a decisive moment. The construction plans that were approved in the settlement councils in the West Bank are now on the table of Defense Minister Benny Gantz and are awaiting approval.”
It explained that “there is talk of about 4,000 settlement housing units that will be worked in different stages, and this is a high number compared to the number of housing units that were discussed in the past in the construction committees. However, according to the Yesha Council of settlers, this was the result of a long construction freeze.”
The newspaper pointed out that “the construction plans are not only for the settlement blocs, but also for the settlements that are considered relatively isolated, including the settlements of “Rafafa” and “Taffouh.”
In addition, the plan contains about a thousand housing units in Haredi settlements, which witness a growing demand of ultra-Orthodox Jews to live in settlements.
Among other things, the construction of 650 housing units in the settlements of Tel Zion, 360 in Emmanuel, 377 in Kedumim, 192 in Shaarei Tikva, 136 in Taffouh, 90 in “Dolph” and 32 in “Ma’ale Adumim”.
For the final stage, 193 housing units in Efrat, 179 in Einav, 168 in Talmon, 136 in Givat Ze’ev, 107 in Hinamit, 93 in Tzofim and 64 in Revava. .
Yedioth reported that “the list of settlements has passed professional approvals, but it is awaiting Gantz’s signature,” explaining that “Kedumim Council Chairman Hananel Turani spoke about the delays in preparing the list and claimed that “Gantz is playing a little politics on our backs.”
Yesha Council settler, David Elhayani, said, “there are about half a million people who want to continue living here, and other young families from all over the country are seeking to move to live here. We are not different from the residents of Tel Aviv and Beersheba.”
Settler Yesha stated that “in the current situation, the government (led by Naftali Bennett) has no right to exist.”
Yedioth had previously claimed that “Gantz ignores the demands of the settler leaders, and has not approved construction plans for many months.”
Israel Gantz, Chairman of the Benjamin Council, claimed that the construction freeze is one of the outcomes of the government that is giving up all the important resources of the State of Israel.” (LKG/RE1)
Mi’raj News Agency (MINA)
