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AFP
Jerusalem
sraeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu announced plans on Thursday to build thousands of new homes for Jewish settlers in annexed east Jerusalem, a controversial project unveiled less than two weeks before a general election.
The Palestinians immediately condemned the move as a campaign tactic ahead of the March 2 vote, designed to please nationalist voters who could prove crucial to the prime minister’s political survival.
“Netanyahu’s attempts to win right-wing Israeli votes... at the expense of Palestinian rights will not bring peace and stability to anyone,” said a statement from a spokesman for Palestinian president Mahmud Abbas.
The Palestinian leader also warned the move “will lead to more tension and violence in the region,” in the statement carried by the official WAFA news agency.
Earlier, Netanyahu’s office released a video in which the Israeli leader announced: “I have huge news today -- we’re adding another 2,200 units to Har Homa.”
The contentious Har Homa community was first built in 1997, under a previous Netanyahu government.
Jerusalem
sraeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu announced plans on Thursday to build thousands of new homes for Jewish settlers in annexed east Jerusalem, a controversial project unveiled less than two weeks before a general election.
The Palestinians immediately condemned the move as a campaign tactic ahead of the March 2 vote, designed to please nationalist voters who could prove crucial to the prime minister’s political survival.
“Netanyahu’s attempts to win right-wing Israeli votes... at the expense of Palestinian rights will not bring peace and stability to anyone,” said a statement from a spokesman for Palestinian president Mahmud Abbas.
The Palestinian leader also warned the move “will lead to more tension and violence in the region,” in the statement carried by the official WAFA news agency.
Earlier, Netanyahu’s office released a video in which the Israeli leader announced: “I have huge news today -- we’re adding another 2,200 units to Har Homa.”
The contentious Har Homa community was first built in 1997, under a previous Netanyahu government.
