Netanyahu does as he's told
Prime Minister Binyamin Netanyahu directed Housing and Construction Minister Uri Ariel to "reconsider" plans for preliminary planning of some 24,0000 housing units beyond the Green Line, saying this would harm efforts to stop Iran's nuclear program.
He said that the announcements of the preliminary planning is without any statutory standing, would do nothing to promote settlement, and only create an unnecessary conflict with the international community at a time when intensive efforts are underway to get an improved deal between the world powers and Iran.
Ariel, according to a statement put out by the PMO, agreed to reconsider all the plans.
State Department Jen Psaki said that the US was "deeply concerned" by the announcement.That's a lot more 'deeply concerned' than they seem to be over the possibility of a nuclear Iran....
Peace Now revealed Tuesday that the Housing Ministry issued tenders in the last two weeks for preliminary work to be done on the units, including hiring an architect to begin drawing up plans for some 1,200 units in E1, between Ma'ale Adumim and Jerusalem.
Government officials said Prime Minister Binyamin Netanyahu, after being informed on Tuesday of the developments, stepped in immediately and demanded the ministry freeze the E1 plans, saying this issue was too sensitive and would detract international attention from Iran.
Israel was roundly censured in December 2011 when it announced plans to develop E1 following the UN General Assembly's vote to gain non member statehood status to the Palestinians.
"We think the people in the Housing Ministry should be more responsible," one government official said, stopping short of accusing Bayit Yehudi Construction and Housing Minister Uri Ariel of intentionally trying to sabotage negotiations with the Palestinians.
"Maybe somebody was looking for headlines." According to the official, Netanyahu specifically instructed that the E1 plans not be worked on "because at this sensitive time the international focus must be clearly on Iran, and we don't want any issue to divert the attention of the international community from this crucial goal."
Asked why, if Netanyahu was concerned about the international reaction, he did not ask the ministry to shelve all the plans at this time, the official said because E1 was the most sensitive.
A Housing Ministry spokesman said that preliminary tenders such as these are issued by the tens of thousands throughout the year throughout the country, and that the vast majority – for various reasons ranging from environmental concerns to objections from various planning bodies -- do not come to fruition. He said that of the 650,000 units in the country in various preliminary stages of planning, only some 25,000 will likely be built, and that only over a period ranging from four to 20 years.And you wonder why we have a housing shortage that sees young couples living in windowless storage rooms and paying rent of $600-$1,000 per month....
Netanyahu caught wind of the plans after Justice Minister Tzipi Livni, who was contacted by foreign ambassadors who learned of the tenders from Peace Now, called cabinet secretary Avichai Mandelblit for clarifications.
In addition to E1, the plans also include 2,500 units in Ma'aleh Adumim, some 12,000 units throughout the Binyamin region, including in Shilo, Eli, Mitzpe Yeriho and Shvut Rachel, and the rest in the Gush Etzion region.
According to Peace Now, the total number of technical plans are23,786, of which 4,000 are in east Jerusalem and 19,786 in the West Bank. Peace Now spokesman Lior Amihai said the level of planning was unusual but cautioned that it would be years before any building could actually take place.Netanyahu has all the backbone of a pretzel soaked in warm water overnight....
Labels: Barack Hussein Obama, Binyamin Netanyahu, E-1, Jerusalem construction, Judea and Samaria construction, Middle East peace process, Tzipi Livni, Uri Ariel
posted by Carl in Jerusalem @ 11:53 PM
2 Comments:
Bibi seriously needs to go, and let Moshe Feiglin take his place, and be elected PM, if only! There are things about Bibi that remind me of Hussein and wifey, who seem to have the same shopping habits as Hussein and the ever-lovely (NOT!) Michelle.Bibi never cares first for Israel, as Feiglin does.Bibi puts himself first, no matter what.
Let's put responsibility where responsibility is due.
MK Ariel decided to announce 24,000 potential plans (not all homes, not all apartments, not all buildings, but potential plans) on his own without consulting the coalition as a whole.
For heaven's sake - the man put Israel in a situation where the world goes insane over potential plans (meaning that many were not official in any way).
Why not say that Israel plans to build a million homes or five million homes if it's just potential?
So MK Ariel put Israel in the position where Israel had to say that these are mostly potential plans. Do we really want to lose the Iranian situation over potential plans?
G-d helps us but He tells us not to poke a stick in a tiger's eye, doesn't He? Doesn't He tell us to refrain from needlessly provoking the goyim in a world where they are already violent and unreasonable towards us?
MK Ariel created a situation where Israel's right wing would get mad at Netanyahu. To what end? No one can compete with Netanyahu for the PM job except left wingers.
Does the right wing really want the left wing to take over?
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