Israel’s War Against Palestine: Documenting the Military Occupation of Palestinian and Arab Lands

New E. Jerusalem homes approved hours before Netanyahu – Obama meet

24 March 2010

Shepherd Hotel - Jerusalem

Shepherd Hotel - Jerusalem

By Nir Hasson, Haaretz – 24 March 2010
www.haaretz.com/hasen/spages/1158417.html

The Jerusalem municipality has given final approval to a group of settlers construct 20 apartments in a controversial hotel in east Jerusalem, Haaretz learned on Tuesday.

The announcement comes as Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu was in Washington smoothing over ties with the United States over the latest settlement-related tensions, and hours before the premier was to meet with President Barack Obama in Washington.

The Shepherd Hotel in the Sheikh Jarrah neighborhood was purchased by American Jewish tycoon Irving Moskowitz in 1985 for $1 million.

Moskowitz, an influential supporter of Ateret Cohanim and heightened Israeli settlement in East Jerusalem, plans to tear down the hotel and build housing units for Jewish Israelis in its place.

The local planning council initially approved the plan in July, a move which angered Britain and the United States and prompted them to call on Israel to cancel the plans. The council issued its final approval for the project last Thursday, which now enables the settlers to begin their construction at once.

An existing structure in the area will be town down to make room for the housing units, while the historic Shepherd Hotel will remain intact. A three-story parking structure and an access road will also be constructed on site.

Netanyahu’s visit to Washington this week was aimed at defusing the crisis that began when the report broke of plans to build 1,600 new units in Ramat Shlomo in east Jerusalem two weeks ago during the visit to Israel of U.S. Vice President Joe Biden.

While Netanyahu distanced himself from the decision made by the Interior Ministry, he repeated both before and during his trip that Israel reserves the right to build in east Jerusalem.

The prime minister who had hoped to rebuild lost trust in his relations with the president said that “relations between Israel and the U.S. should not be risked over divisions in the matter of Jerusalem.

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