Israel approves 380 new East Jerusalem settler homes

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JERUSALEM (AFP) -- Israeli authorities gave final approval on Wednesday to the construction of 380 new settler homes in two areas of occupied East Jerusalem, a local official said.

"The municipal commission has given construction permits for 307 homes in Ramot and 73 in Har Homa," Yosef Pepe Alalu, a Jerusalem city councillor with the opposition Meretz party, told AFP.

He said local officials were taking advantage of attention focusing on Israeli elections due in March to expand settlements.

"This kind of decision distances us from any chance of reaching an agreement with the Palestinians," he said.

Despite repeated warnings from Washington that it is fueling tensions, Israel has approved a series of plans for new settler homes in east Jerusalem in recent months.

Israel seized East Jerusalem during the 1967 Six-Day War and later annexed it in a move never recognized by the international community.

It refers to the entire city as its "united, undivided capital," and does not view construction there as settlement activity. more

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