U.S. Criticizes Israel plan to subsidize illegal West Bank settlement construction
Comments by top State Department official come after Netanyahu cabinet announces plan to encourage immigration into 557 illegal 'national priority' settlements, which reportedly include 70 in the West Bank. Ref. Source 9
Israeli plan earmarks 10 percent of West Bank for illegal settlement expansion:
Newly released maps indicate Civil Administration secretly setting aside additional land for illegal "Jewish settlements", presumably with the intention of expanding them. Ref. Source 7
Israel: 'Jesus is a monkey' daubed on Jerusalem monastery wall:
Hebrew graffiti, including the phrase "Jesus is a monkey," was written on the walls of a monastery in Jerusalem in what police suspect was an attack by right-wing, pro-settler extremists. Ref. Source 6
Netanyahu pledges Israel will continue building in occupied Jerusalem:
Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu paid a visit to the Jerusalem neighborhood of Gilo on Tuesday in a defiant prelude to talks with the European Union's top diplomat, who has condemned Gilo's illegal expansion. Ref. Source 1
An Israeli official says the government has approved settlement construction of 3,000 new West Bank units. Ref. USAToday
Egypt summons Israeli ambassador over settlement expansion:
The ministry's Israel department head, Alaa Eddin Youssef, has called the ambassador to voice Egypt's objection to the expansion move as "A violation to the land-for-peace principle" and a hurdle to efforts made for the resumption of Palestinian-Israeli negotiations, according to spokesperson Amr Roshdy. Ref. Source 3
Israel presses on with plans for 6,000 new settler homes:
The settlements are illegal and Western powers have been especially troubled by Israel's declared intent to build in E-1, a wedge of land between occupied East Jerusalem and the occupied West Bank Ref. Source 4