Israel Matzav

Jerusalem planning council snubs its nose at Obama and Cameron

Snubbing its nose at US President Barack Hussein Obama and British Prime Minister David Cameron, the Jerusalem planning council on Wednesday approved the construction of 2,610 new Jewish housing units at Givat HaMatos, a new neighborhood to be built in southeastern Jerusalem. The new neighborhood is located beyond the 1949 armistice lines - the place where fighting stopped in the 1948-49 War of Independence - but well within Jerusalem's city limits. Obama's and Cameron's respective governments blasted Israel on Tuesday for having the temerity to build homes for Jews in its own capital.

"We are deeply disappointed that Israel insists on continuing this pattern of provocative action. These repeated announcements and plans of new construction run counter to the cause of peace," US State Department spokeswoman Victoria Nuland told reporters.

"Israel's leaders continually say that they support a path towards a two-state solution yet these actions only put that goal further at risk.

"So we again call on Israel, and the Palestinians, to cease any kinds of counterproductive, unilateral actions and take concrete steps to return to direct negotiations," Nuland said.

In a separate statement, British Foreign Secretary William Hague called the Israeli decision "a serious provocation and an obstacle to peace."

"If implemented, it would make a negotiated two-state solution, with Jerusalem as a shared capital, very difficult to achieve," he said. "We urge Israel to reverse this decision and take no further steps aimed at expanding or entrenching settlement activity."

US and EU officials were in “close contact” regarding how to best and most effectively react to Israeli plans for thousands of new Jewish apartments in east Jerusalem, European diplomatic officials said on Tuesday.

The comments came amid reports that the four EU countries on the UN Security Council – France, Britain, Portugal and Germany – were preparing a statement in the council condemning the settlement construction. The coordination with the US stems from a desire to avoid an American veto of any Security Council resolution on the matter.

Well, Boo F... Hoo. The 'Palestinians' - the fake 'people' (yes, Newt Gingrich had that one right) invented by the Arab countries as a tool to fight Israel's existence - have turned down countless offers for a 'reichlet' between the Jordan and the Mediterranean. With the consent of their negotiators, not one of those offers has included the areas in question. And for the last four years, the 'Palestinians' have just refused to come to the table. Enough is enough. We liberated Jerusalem in a defensive war 45 years ago, it has been our capital for 3,000 years, and there is simply no reason not to build here. 

And what happened in the Jerusalem planning council?

The Jerusalem Local Planning Committee on Wednesday afternoon gave final approval for plans to construct 2,610 new housing units in Givat Hamatos, a new neighborhood in southeast Jerusalem located across the Green Line.

Meanwhile, Prime Minister Binyamin Netanyahu told 11 envoys from Asian and Pacific countries on Wednesday that Jerusalem has been the capital of the Jewish people for 3,000 years, and Israel would continue to build it.

Netanyahu made his comments on the terrace of the King David Hotel, overlooking the walls of Jerusalem's Old City.

"I want to take the opportunity to point out a simple fact," he said. "The walls of Jerusalem that you see behind us represent the capital of the Jewish people for some 3,000 years."

Netanyahu said every Israeli government has built in Jerusalem, "and we will not change that."

"This is something natural, and I ask each of you to imagine that you would be restricted in building in your capitals," he said. "This is not logical, and for us what is important is that we are committed to our capital, to peace, and we will build in Jerusalem for all its residents."

Attending the meeting with Netanyahu were the ambassadors of China, India, Japan, South Korea, the Philippines, Australia, Myanmar, Thailand, Nepal, Vietnam and Sri Lanka.
On Monday, the Interior Ministry in a surprising move did not approve a major part of the new Givat Hamatos neighborhood. The committee decided to postpone more than 1,000 units for both Arabs and Jews which would be located in both Beit Safafa and Givat Hamatos.

 Actions have consequences. If the 'Palestinians' are going to run to the UN rather than negotiating with us, then we're going to do what we should have done long ago. Build baby build!

Labels: East Jerusalem, Jerusalem construction, Jerusalem is the capital of Israel

posted by Carl in Jerusalem @ 6:38 PM