Peace Now accuses Israel of announcing the construction of new homes in the West Bank

March 25 (EUROPA PRESS) –

The Peace Now organization has accused the Israeli government of violating the agreement they reached with representatives of the Palestinian Authority after announcing the construction of 1,029 homes in the West Bank this week.

Representatives of the Palestinian Authority and the Israeli Government met last Sunday in Sharm el Sheikh, Egypt, and announced a commitment to reduce tension and violence with a view to the start of the Muslim holy month of Ramadan, which this year coincides with Easter bean.

The agreement included suspending the approval of new settlements for four months and refusing the authorization of new outposts for six months.

“This is another harmful and unnecessary construction initiative,” Peace Now said in a statement, in which it denounced that “the most extreme right-wing government in the country’s history is not only trampling democracy but also the possibility of a future political agreement”.

Israel is going to build 940 new homes in the Efrat and Beitar Illit settlements, and another 89 in East Jerusalem, according to data provided by the organization, and has assured that the tension between Israelis and Palestinians could increase both in the short and long term.

Since the beginning of the year, 85 Palestinians, 13 Israelis and a Ukrainian woman have died due to the spiral of violence. An increase in the actions of Palestinian armed groups is common to coincide with Ramadan, although so far there have been no incidents.

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said last Wednesday that the government “has no intention” of building “new” settlements in the northern West Bank, after international criticism of Parliament’s decision to approve an amendment to a law that it would legalize four settlements evacuated in 2005 following the Israeli withdrawal from the Gaza Strip.