Documents reveal Israel’s plans for more Jerusalem settlements
Planning documents shared with the Guardian on April 17th revealed that the Israeli government intends to build more settlements across East Jerusalem, including over 20 projects involving thousands of housing units.
Sari Kronish, from the Israeli rights organisation Bimkom — Planners for Planning Rights, cited the government’s “unprecedented speed.” “The fast-tracking of these plans has been unparalleled in the last six months,” he said.
This decision aligns with the goals of the Israeli settler movement, though it challenges the possibility of a Palestinian state and strains Israel’s relations with the international community. On April 4th, US President Joe Biden explicitly warned Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu that continued aid from the US hinged on improved conditions in Gaza.
Two new settlements were approved in East Jerusalem — the first in over a decade. One, decided on October 9th, involves the expansion of Kidmat Zion, a high-security settlement in the Palestinian neighbourhood of Ras Al-Amud.
In Beit Safafa, a Palestinian community encircled by these developments, work has resumed on the Givat Hamatos and new Givat Shaked projects.
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After international opposition, Givat Hamatos was shut down for a decade before resuming in 2020. Last month the site was bustling with workers, heavy machinery and trucks. Givat Shaked received approval on January 4th, and will be built on the northwestern side of Beit Safafa.
The Givat Shaked project faced significant opposition due to posing a potential threat to the Oslo Peace Accords, cultivating international criticism. Though the project still gained momentum via endorsement from the then Interior Minister Ayelet Shaked.
He rejected any claims of Palestinian control over East Jerusalem, and instead said it was “unthinkable to prevent development and construction in this area, or anywhere else in the city.”
High-rise buildings containing 700 housing units will overpower Beit Safafa and eliminate the chance for the Muslim-majority to expand for younger families. Palestinians are unable to build larger homes in the neighbourhood — or elsewhere — due to bureaucratic and other restrictions.
Similarly, another project, the Lower Aqueduct, received approval on December 29th. It will exist adjacent to a Palestinian neighbourhood, complicating the demographic and political landscape.
“Many of the settlement plans are strategically designated for areas along the southern perimeter of East Jerusalem,” said Amy Cohen of Israeli human rights NGO Ir Amim.
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“If constructed, they would further fracture the Palestinian space,” she added, “and create a ‘sealing-off’ effect of East Jerusalem from Bethlehem and the southern West Bank.”
Palestinians account for around 40 percent of Jerusalem’s population, just under 1 million. Successive Israeli governments have sought to maintain the city’s Jewish majority.
“Such moves directly undermine conditions necessary for a viable independent Palestinian state with a contiguous capital in East Jerusalem,” said Cohen. “All this while bringing planning and building for Palestinians in the city to a complete stop.”
Ahmed Salman, the chair of Beit Safafa’s community council, said he was “not optimistic.”
“We had good relations with the municipality once, but not in recent years,” he said. “Since the war, life goes on, but they approved the plan and dismissed all our objections.”
“Our family has been here for 250 years,” he added. “Now I have a black hole in my heart because I can’t see how my children and grandchildren can spend their lives here.”
The Guardian
