The Israeli government stated that plans for settlement construction and projects in Jerusalem are on-going and will continue, adding that this is in complete harmony with the policies of successive Israeli governments over the past 40 years.
The Cabinet Secretary, Zvi Hauser, announced that the latest Israeli decision to build 1,345 new settlement units in east Jerusalem was taken more than three weeks ago, and that the announcement’s timing, which coincided with Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s visit to the US was “for some reason”.
Hauser said in an interview with Radio Israel on Wednesday, November 10, that Tel Aviv and the US administration are discussing the issue of Jerusalem settlements amicably. He criticised the Israeli media for exaggerating differences between the two sides following Israel’s latest announcement to continue settlement construction in Jerusalem.