Monday 19 July 2010

Barghouthi: Israel started to build 100 settlement units in Beit Jala and Walaja


[ 19/07/2010 - 03:14 PM ]

RAMALLAH, (PIC)-- Secretary-general of the national initiative party and lawmaker Mustafa Al-Barghouthi revealed that the Israeli occupation authority (IOA) started days ago to build 100 settlement units on Palestinian lands in Beit Jala town and Walaja village near Bethlehem.

Barghouthi said that the IOA already built the foundations of those units after bulldozing Palestinian citizens' lands and putting up barbed wire around the seized area to prevent anyone from approaching, noting that the construction is taking place secretly.

He stressed that Israel uses its peace talks with the Palestinian Authority (PA) as a cover for its moves to create a new reality on the ground and impose a fait accompli preventing the establishment of a Palestinian state with full sovereignty.

The lawmaker also affirmed that the IOA is still continuing to build 32 housing units in Tekoa settlement in Bethlehem and expand its settlements in the West Bank and occupied Jerusalem.

Barghouthi underlined that the size of settlement expansion nowadays increased in the West Bank and Jerusalem and became much bigger than it was before Israel alleged it froze construction, where Israel did not halt its building activities in all units that were under construction as it alleged and issued permits for the building of thousands of housing units.

In a new development, the IOA ordered its civil administration in Jerusalem to initiate the demolition of what it described as unlicensed Palestinian homes in the areas classified as C for alleged security reasons.

The Haaretz newspaper reported Monday that this decision was taken in compliance with a petition submitted by Regavim movement which calls for razing all Palestinian structures in six West Bank areas at the pretext they pose a threat to Israel's security.

Israeli security sources affirmed that that the talk is about the demolition of Palestinian homes located near main roads used by settlers and military training zones. The IOA already knocked down two Palestinian homes last Thursday in Al-Khalil.

The newspaper also noted that the Israeli army has stepped up the policy of demolishing homes in Al-Bekaa area and displaced 15 Palestinian families so far at the beginning of the current month, adding that 16 families had already received demolition orders in the same area.


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