BICOM

Israel’s Interior Ministry and the Jerusalem Municipality yesterday approved plans for the construction of around 700 housing units intended for Arab residents in the East Jerusalem neighbourhood of Beit Safafa.

The Jerusalem Municipality’s District Planning and Construction Committee and the Interior Ministry are conducting a series of planning meetings this week, relating to construction plans in East Jerusalem. Deliberating yesterday over plans to develop housing in the area of Givat Hamatos, the authorities approved a project for 700 homes in the Arab neighbourhood of Beit Safafa, but rejected proposals for more than 1,000 housing units slated for both Arabs and Jews in the area.

Jerusalem city councillor Yair Gabbay, who sits on both the Local and District Planning Committees said that permission had been denied to the larger project due to poor planning, commenting “There were problems with roads, with infrastructure, neighbours who weren’t notified, and that’s why it failed.”

On Monday, plans for 1,500 housing units in the Jewish Ramat Shlomo neighbourhood of East Jerusalem were approved by the Interior Ministry in a decision which was sharply criticised by the UK and United States. Today, the Jerusalem Municipality will meet to discuss plans for another development in Givat Hamatos, while the Interior Ministry is expected to deliberate tomorrow over construction plans in Gilo South, also situated in East Jerusalem.