The Palestinians swiftly condemned the move, saying they would seek worldwide pressure to halt the plan from going forward. Hebron, in particular, has been a flashpoint for violence.
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The recent survey follows almost a year of low-level violence between Palestinians and Israelis: at least 34 Israelis have been killed in shootings, stabbings, and vehicular attacks since September, and at least 206 Palestinians by Israeli fire.
COGAT, the Israeli defense body responsible for civilian affairs in the West Bank, confirmed Monday that permission “to plan infrastructures” has been granted.
Hagit Ofran of the anti-settlement group Peace Now said it was the first approval in the area in more than a decade.
Peace can only be achieved after “taking tangible measures to oblige Israel to commit to the rule of the worldwide community and the resolution of global legitimacy related to the full halt of Israeli settlements in 1967 lands”.
Jewish residents of Hebron say the land is private property that belonged to Jews before the establishment of the state in 1948, according to Haaretz.
Appelbaum said the new regulation, if not revoked, would “reinforce a social and political regime in the West Bank that enforces one set of laws for Israelis and another, inferior, set of regulations for Palestinians”. Israel recently issued orders for seven Palestinian homes to be demolished in Hebron hills. More than 206 Palestinians have been killed by Israeli fire, the majority said by Israel to have been attackers. A special team has been planning the settlement’s expansion in recent months.
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“It showed there is still some basis for optimism with the right leadership”, Dr. Hermann said, as reported by the Associated Press. There were 1,270 Palestinians and 1,184 Israelis who were surveyed in the poll, according to Algemeiner.
