Israel has approved the construction of hundreds of illegal residential units for Israeli settlers in the occupied Palestinian territories. On Thursday, Tel Aviv allowed the building of 900 settlement units in the East al-Quds (Jerusalem) settlement neighborhood of Har Homa, AFP reported.
"This is a program which was approved by the regional (planning and construction) committee two years ago," Efrat Orbach, an Israeli official, said.
"According to the planning process in Israel, [it] needed the completion of amendments, therefore it was finally approved today," the official said.
Tel Aviv occupied East al-Quds (Jerusalem) alongside the other Palestinian land of the West Bank in 1967 and later annexed both territories. The international community has refused to recognize either of the moves.
In November 2009, Israel put a 10-month halt on its settlement activities, but refused to renew the partial moratorium.
Meanwhile, the PA's chief negotiator said the organization would press ahead with its plans of requesting the United Nations to recognize Palestine as a full member state despite Israel's obstructionist efforts.
Saeb Erakat dismissed as a mere public relations stunt the recent statements by an Israeli official who alleged that Tel Aviv was inclined to renew talks with the Palestinians if they drop their UN membership bid.
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