Jerusalem planners approve construction of 500 settlement homes
Monday, November 3, 2014 at 11:14PM http://www.haaretz.com/news/diplomacy-defense/.premium-1.624219
by Nir Hasson 3 November 2014 Haaretz
Ramat Shlomo plan was advanced by PM Netanyahu last week, sparking new diplomatic crisis with United States. Site is important nature zone for birds, deer and hydraxes.
The Jerusalem District Planning and Building Committee on Monday approved a plan to construct 500 housing units in Ramat Shlomo, a Jewish neighborhood situated over the Green Line in East Jerusalem.
The construction plan is one of two in East Jerusalem declared by Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu last week, reportedly as part of the response to Palestinian violence in the capital. The original plan for Ramat Shlomo was for 640 housing units, but the planning committee has only approved 500. The U.S. administration has already condemned construction in both areas.
The construction plan is to extend over 76 dunams (19 acres) in the northern part of the ultra-Orthodox Ramat Shlomo neighborhood and will bring it very close to the Palestinian neighborhood of Beit Hanina. This plan was discussed a few years ago but rejected when it was realized that in order to build the neighborhood, land would have to be expropriated from Palestinian owners. That is because while the neighborhood itself is built on Jewish-owned land, the road to it passes through Palestinian-owned land. However, the area of the plan was earmarked for future construction in Jerusalem’s new master plan, despite vigorous objections from environmental groups.
The Ramat Shlomo neighbourhood in E.Jerusalam, located beyond the Green Line.Photo by Emil Salman
Although the areas in question are privately owned, the plan was submitted to the district planning committee by the Jerusalem municipality and Moriah, a municipality-owned infrastructure company. Planning officials said Sunday they believed the submission was made by these bodies so the expropriation of land could be moved forward.
Most of the area planned for the new neighborhood has been marked in an urban nature survey by the Society for the Protection of Nature in Israel as Atarot Stream South. The SPNI survey describes the site as rich in terms of nature, with a herd of deer, hyraxes and other mammals, and as an important feeding and hunting zone for birds that winter in Jerusalem and nest there in spring. It is also home to a variety of reptiles and insects, the report states, and is one of the westernmost sites where hyraxes have been observed.
The new plan joins an older one to expand Ramat Shlomo that was approved by the district planning committee in 2010. That sparked a major diplomatic crisis with the United States because the approval came during an official visit by Vice President Joe Biden to Israel.
A crisis with the United States also broke out last week over the decision to advance the current plan. A few hours after the prime minister announced the construction in East Jerusalem, State Department spokeswoman Jen Psaki said that such construction is not “conducive to what they state they want to achieve, which is peace in the region and a two-state solution.” Psaki said U.S. policy was clear and “continues to oppose unilateral steps that would prejudge the outcome of negotiations on Jerusalem.”
The European Union also criticized the planned construction in East Jerusalem and asked Israel for clarifications.
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U.S. slams Israel's 'unfortunate' building plan in East Jerusalem
Palestinian negotiatoe Saeb Erekat calls Jerusalem panel's approval of 500 new East Jerusalem homes a slap on the face: State Department says US continuing to engage with Israeli government to make its stance against settlement construction clear.
by Barak Ravid, Jack Khoury and Nir Hasson 3 November 2014 Haaretz
The United States on Monday condemned the Jerusalem District Planning and Construction Committee's decision to promote a construction plan for hundreds of new housing units in the Ramat Shlomo neighborhood, beyond the Green Line.
"It is unfortunate that after the unequivocal and unanimous position last week of the international community, opposing construction in East Jerusalem, at this sensitive time the Israeli authorities chose to move forward," said Jen Psaki, State Department Spokesman.
"We continue to engage at the highest level with the Israeli government to make our position absolutely clear – that we view settlement activity as illegitimate and that we unequivocally oppose unilateral steps that prejudge the future of Jerusalem."
The decision "flies in the face of Israel's statements about commitment to the two-state solution," Psaki added.
The construction plan is one of two in East Jerusalem declared by Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu last week, reportedly as part of the response to Palestinian violence in the capital. The original plan for Ramat Shlomo was for 640 housing units, but the planning committee has only approved 500. The U.S. administration has already condemned construction in both areas.
Palestinian chief negotiator Saeb Erekat called the decision "a slap in the face."
"With the situation in occupied Jerusalem at a boiling point, Israel’s latest settlement announcement is a slap in the face to Secretary [of State John] Kerry, to the international community, to the Palestinian people, and to peace," he said. "The message is clear: the Netanyahu government chooses settlements over negotiations, colonization over the two-state solution, and apartheid over equality and coexistence.
"The international community must realize that statements alone will not stop Israeli settlements, protect the Palestinian people, or save the two-state solution," Erekat added.
"The international community has the responsibility to hold Israel accountable for its ongoing violations of international law and signed agreements, including its dramatic escalation of violations against our people in occupied East Jerusalem through settlement construction, forced displacement, and denial of our right to worship. The international community must support our right to access international treaties and organizations, including the Rome Statute."
Responding to the U.S. statement, Peace Now said that this time, Netanyahu can't blame the leftist organization for the crisis with the United States. The "harsh American condemnation is in his name only," the group said.
The construction plan is to extend over 76 dunams (19 acres) in the northern part of the ultra-Orthodox Ramat Shlomo neighborhood and will bring it very close to the Palestinian neighborhood of Beit Hanina. This plan was discussed a few years ago, but rejected when it was realized that in order to build the neighborhood, land would have to be expropriated from Palestinian owners.
That is because while the neighborhood itself is built on Jewish-owned land, the road to it passes through Palestinian-owned land. However, the area of the plan was earmarked for future construction in Jerusalem’s new master plan, despite vigorous objections from environmental groups.
Although the areas in question are privately owned, the plan was submitted to the district planning committee by the Jerusalem municipality and Moriah, a municipality-owned infrastructure company. Planning officials said Sunday they believed the submission was made by these bodies so the expropriation of land could be moved forward.
The new plan joins an older one to expand Ramat Shlomo that was approved by the district planning committee in 2010. That sparked a major diplomatic crisis with the United States because the approval came during an official visit by Vice President Joe Biden to Israel.
A crisis with the United States also broke out last week over the decision to advance the current plan. A few hours after the prime minister announced the construction in East Jerusalem, State Department spokeswoman Jen Psaki said that such construction is not “conducive to what they state they want to achieve, which is peace in the region and a two-state solution.” Psaki said U.S. policy was clear and “continues to oppose unilateral steps that would prejudge the outcome of negotiations on Jerusalem.”
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UN Report: Israeli settlements have doubled in the last four years
Friday, 31 October 2014 17:59 Middle East Monitor
The UN committee's report stressed the need to investigate Israeli violations in the 2008, 2009, 2012 and 2014 wars on the Gaza Strip
The number of Israeli settlements on occupied Palestinian land have doubled in the last 54 months, UN Commission on Human Rights member Cees Flinterman said today.
Flinterman presented the fourth stage of a report monitoring activity of Israel's practices in Palestinian territory at a press conference held at the United Nations in Geneva.
He said: "We are concerned by the level of violence that settlers are using against Palestinian civilians and property owners in both the West Bank and East Jerusalem."
The UN official asked Israel to halt settlement expansion on occupied Palestinian land adding: "We have yet to receive an official response from Israel in regards to the increased number of settlements in the West Bank."
Flinterman also expressed his disappointment at the fact that the Israeli government refuses to recognise that torture is a crime. "The committee is greatly disappointed in Israel for not recognising that torture is a crime. The torture and mistreatment that Israel practices in detention centres is a serious problem and we call on Israel to address them within a year's time."
Nigel Rodley, president of the UN Commission on Human Rights, pointed out that the situation in the region has not changed despite the number of international efforts in the region; very little changes have been implemented. Rodley also pointed out that the UN Commission on Human Rights criticised the latest Israeli aggression against the Gaza Strip and called on Tel Aviv to conduct the necessary investigations into human rights violations.
The UN committee's report stressed the need to investigate Israeli violations in the 2008, 2009, 2012 and 2014 wars on the Gaza Strip.
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