Israel approves more ‘illegal settlements’ in Jerusalem

Israel has approved 200 new settler homes in east Jerusalem on Wednesday, in a move that threatened to push Israelis and Palestinians deeper into conflict after weeks of unrest over the city’s holiest sites. The announcement on Wednesday came just before US Secretary of State John Kerry was scheduled to arrive in neighbouring Jordan on a mission aimed in part at restoring calm. The new settlement construction was also announced shortly after suspected Jewish extremists torched a West Bank mosque, in another development likely to inflame tempers in an already heated atmosphere, stoking fears of a new Palestinian uprising.

These decisions to expand construction have the potential to exacerbate this difficult situation on the ground, and they will not contribute to efforts to reduce the tension.

Israeli Finance Minister Yair Lapid

The Palestinians claim east Jerusalem as their capital and consider all Israeli construction there to be illegal settlement activity — a position that is backed by the international community. Much of the recent violence stemmed from tensions surrounding Jerusalem’s holy hilltop complex, known to Jews as the Temple Mount and to Muslims as the Noble Sanctuary. It is the third-holiest site in Islam and the most sacred place in Judaism.

Middle East