Tzipi Hotovely, Israeli member of Knesset of the Likud party headed by Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, called on the Israeli government to escalate the construction and expansion of Jewish settlements in the occupied West Bank, in occupied East Jerusalem and the occupied Negev. Her statements came during a meeting for the Likud party on Monday evening.Hotovely claimed that Israel needs to construct more settlements in order to “resolve the current housing crisis in Israel”. All settlements in the occupied territories, besides being built in violation to International Law and the Fourth Geneva Conventions, are Jewish-only.
Hotovely stated that “the Israeli government can resolve the housing crisis by encouraging the Israelis to live in border areas in Israel in addition to the West Bank and Jerusalem”.
The Likud MK further stated that Israel can resolve the issue “of Bedouins occupying the land of Israel” in the south, by establishing “legal towns and villages”, and by constructing projects that enables the Israelis to find affordable housing.
It is worth mentioning that Hotovely is preparing to present a plan to the Israeli Knesset aiming at extending the boundaries of Jerusalem, as part of the so-called “Greater Jerusalem Plan”, by annexing more Palestinians lands in the occupied West Bank.
Her plan include considering the Maaleh Adumim and Givat Zeev illegal, among other settlements, as part of the “Greater Jerusalem”.
There are at least 80,000 residents of the Bedouin unrecognized villages in the Negev. They have no civil rights, no elected representatives and are facing ongoing assaults, including demolition of homes and erasing of entire villages.
In 1997, residents of these villages founded that Regional Council of Unrecognized Villages in the Negev, representing 45 “unrecognized villages” and a total population of 76.000 persons. The population of each village varies between 500 and 5000 inhabitants.
