The Times of Israel reports: Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu approved on Thursday an expansion project for the settlement of Beit El in the West Bank, okaying the construction of 300 new housing units in the community.
The Prime Minister’s Office released a statement saying Netanyahu met this afternoon with Beit El Mayor Shai Alon and told him that the units would be approved for the next stage in September. The statement emphasized that the commitment to the project was not new and was agreed to by the prime minister in 2012.
The prime minister publicly pledged to build the 300 units five years ago, following the destruction of five houses in Beit El’s Givat Ulpana neighborhood. The High Court of Justice had ordered the demolition of the buildings due to their construction on private Palestinian land. The Thursday announcement came after Netanyahu met Alon on Monday, following a public spat in which Alon accused the prime minister of lying to him about West Bank construction permits. In that meeting, Netanyahu assured the mayor that he would fulfill his promise, according to a release by the Beit El municipality.
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