Jerusalem planning committee to hold first meet since Biden's visit
Jerusalem mayor, in Washington, says construction in East Jerusalem will continue, despite U.S. pressure.
By Nir Hasson and Natasha Mozgovaya Tags: Jerusalem Israel newsThe Jerusalem District Planning and Construction Committee will convene next week, marking the first time such meeting will take place since the diplomatic crisis with the United States erupted following the announcement of Jerusalem building plans during U.S. Vice President Joe Biden's visit to Israel.
After the Interior Ministry announced the building of 1,600 new housing units in an ultra-Orthodox neighborhood in East Jerusalem last month, which sparked an uproar in the international arena, the Prime Minister ordered the planning and construction committee to halt all deliberations in order to prevent future mishaps.
At this moment, two meetings are scheduled for the Jerusalem District Planning and Construction Committee. The first meeting, which will take place on Tuesday, will deal with bigger plans and not with building plans for East Jerusalem. During the second meeting, on Thursday, the committee will discuss plans for a small number of housing units in the eastern part of the city, although it is yet unknown whether the plans are meant for Arabs or Jews.
According to Jerusalem architects and contractors, the fear of the diplomatic crisis with the United States caused the system to act "hysterically," and even plans with no potential to cause national harm were postponed.
Meanwhile on Wednesday, Jerusalem Mayor Nir Barkat told Haaretz that construction in East Jerusalem will continue, despite U.S. pressure for a building freeze.
Barkat, on a visit in Washington, said that it is impossible to prevent a city such as Jerusalem from growing.
"We are going to build, we are not going to stop it, it's illegal to stop it," Barkat said. "And we'll continue to do the best and the right thing for the city of Jerusalem."
Barkat also denied reports that a
Construction in East Jerusalem has been a major sticking point between Israel and the U.S. since Israel infuriated Washington last month by announcing a major new East Jerusalem housing development during a visit by U.S. Vice President Joe Biden.
Barkat met Wednesday with Republican congressmen Eric Cantor and Peter Roskam. Both Cantor and Roskam were critical of the Obama administration's pressure on Israel to freeze contruction in East Jerusalem.
"There is a dynamic that is going on and it's very important to us to reaffirm that Israel is an ally, Israel is not a project," Roskam said. "There are people in this city [Washington] who view Israel as a project, as a stumbling block, and we are here to say: no no no, this is an ally and we need to do everything we can to reaffirm this relationship."
Cantor said that many in Congress disagree with Obama's stance on Jerusalem.
"The supporters of the Israel-US relationship on the both sides of the aisle were a little taken aback by this administration's emphasis on construction in Jerusalem, especially in Jewish neighborhoods, given the larger challenges that the US and Israel face in region, especially the existential threat posed by Iran and its terrorist proxies," Cantor said. "[There is] strong bipartisan support on the history of united Jerusalem."
Barkat said that construction plans are a municipal matter, not a national one.
"I have no problem to share my input and take government's input and that's fine, but we don't report to prime minister," he said. "It doesn't work like that."
Israel annexed East Jerusalem, the site of sacred shrines holy to Jews, Muslims and Christians, after capturing it in the 1967 Six-Day War.
Some 180,000 Israelis now live in Jewish neighborhoods built there in the past four decades, and about 2,000 more live in the heart of traditionally Arab neighborhoods.
The Palestinians, the U.S. and the rest of the international community do not recognize the annexation.
Netanyahu, however, has said repeatedly that East Jerusalem will remain under Israeli sovereignty in any peace deal, a position the Palestinians reject.
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Jerusalem Mayor Nir Barkat |
| Photo by: (Olivier Fitoussi) |
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No one has the right to dictate to Israel what she may or may not do. Do what you must to insure Jewish values and lives to live in peace in Israel. Obama is worth ignoring.
Make the offer that OBAMA cannot refuse. Construction anywhere in Jerusalem and Israel will not be a humiliation to Biden's next trip with Obama. Coronation date set by the JDP. Benjamin, don't even think about it.I pray for the Return of Wisdom to Jews. Not to allow the abomination. Shalom !
They know full well how the world went into a tail spin in 2005 when they proposed building in the EI corridor and now they have pushed their way into E Jereusalem....What beastly greed and lawlessness! This is for those brazen upstarts and outlaws, people are eagerly signing on the dotted line to punish them to the hilt this time... No one is going to let this offense go this time...Israelis will pay dearly for dismiss- ing the rule of law and Palestinian rights. Dutch
Congress supports Israel, not its expansion by conquest, not land theft, and not the settlement enterprise. Try and get a vote to withdraw from the Geneva Conventions or even a resolution to denounce the judgments at Nuremberg. See what kind of support you get. Or get a resolution like Dick Armey's proposal, to ethnically cleanse Gaza of its Arab population. He proposed that just before leaving the House. It's in the Congressional Record.
in the law, the word "sovereignty" was also omitted. It's all a sham. The law was created not to have any legal effect or consequence, neither in iternational law (even if it had actually purported to annex) nor in domestic law (beause it didn't actually purport to annex). It was created to facilitate a point of argument base what would otherwise be a blatant logical fallacy. Now it is a disguised logical fallacy. Case closed!
the "Jerusalem law" changed nothing in Israel's relationship to East Jerusalem even under domestic Israeli law because after the Knesset's first reading of the bill they purpusfully ommited both the borders of "United Jerusalem" and ommitted the word "annexation". Why? Because the lawmakers knew that would prevent adding more and more of the West Bank into the municipal "boundries" (which remain undefined) of Greater Jerusalem, and specifying borders (even if null & void) the law itself could be used as Israeli proof of Israeli expansionism in international courts. So Israel's relationship to E Jerusalem remains exactly the same as when it captured it in 1967 & before the "Jerusalem 'law'". Nothing changed. It is still occuied territory. It hasn't annexed East Jerusalem cos the Jerusalem law is not a law purporting annexation (even if it did it would be null and void in international law). Israel just extended civilian law over E Jerusalem with the "Jerusalem law" as smoke screen.
like israel's occupation and purported "annexation" (at least Jordan's annexation law actually specified it was a law o annexation) was also null and void. By the way, how can Israel be the owner of E Jerusalem. Israel was a non-entity before it's creation. It declared independence within the borders the UN specified for the Jewish state, which excluded Jerusalem as part of either of the two states (Jewish or Palestinian). It was meant to be an international zone. So it was never in the ownership of Israel under international law. Thus, it wasn't captured by Jordan off of Israel. So Israel today is in the position Jordan was, no one recognized Jordan's annexation and declaration of Jerusalem as it's second capital. Btw, Jordan captured it pre-1948. So they were harsher to Jordan. Israrl still complains though.
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Ever since 1967, when Israel tried to sink the U.S.S. Liberty and France blew Israel off for not considering France's interests when deciding upon it's actions; America has become a captive of Israel. In recent decades, particularly the last, Israel has adopted the idea that America is it's slave, which can never look out for America's interests if it conflicted with Israel's desires. This is a very dangerous attitude for Israel to take, but then Israel is controlled by ultra-right wing extremists. Ultra- right wing extremists NEVER consider reality when pursuing their dreams. Israel wants it all and America needs to settle the situation in the mideast down. Israel wants endless war and America needs peace. The two nations are at a cross-roads where cooperation is being rejected by Israel and it is only a matter of time until cooperation will be impossible for the United States.
that it, Israel is not a independent state:: Israel is a state of america, why dont this two congressmen worry about their own country, I have never seen a mayor visit capital of america, Washington to discust about projects. Lets give a chance to a peace and stop this conversation.
israel is a great example of biting the hand that feeds it
Support for Israel is not support for the occupation or seizing land or theft.
It's also not so simple before 1949. Russia's annexation of the Baltic States was considered by many to be illegal and void.
easy come, easy go. i thought that the government had finally taken a step forward but alas, no. also, someone correct me if i'm wrong, but the article mentions that israel "annexed" jerusalem. is annexation not illegal under international law? i could've sworn that was outlawed many, many decades ago.
Forget this "eternal" nonsense. We live by the laws of today not by some wannabe pipe dream. Wake up and wise up. This "would be" kleptocracy you so passionatley support isn't going to happen. Jerusalem will be your eternal capital but as Jerusalem is sacred to Christians, Muslims and Jews, that is the way it will always be. Get used to that inescapable fact. You know it makes sense. Luvvly jubbly.
You are obviously referring to the 4th Geneva Convention. Please show me 1. Can you kindly provide evidence that it was the intent of the framers of the 4th Geneva Convention to allow for non-party entities to enjoy the status of occupation.There were multiple conferences going into the framing of this convention, and these conferences are well-documented. 2. Where does it say "no annexation?"
Better go back and do your homework. Real legal experts have determined that according to the San Remo agreement Jerusalem does belong completly to Israel. It was illegally occupied by Jordan.
Build ten million new homes for Jews in Jerusalem and we will make the babies to fill them up! AMEN!
"This means Israeli presence is even more illegal because they have extended civilian law in occupied territory which hasn`t been annexed" Meanwhile, it's LESS illegal since the territory is part of the entity Israel was taken from and the population of Jews which lived there were removed by Jordan. It was a non-state region torn by an ethnic civil war. The post 1949 laws were drawn to address the lands of nations. "Palestine," and the varying territories associated with it never was one. Applying standard conventions isn't so cut and dried in this complex set of circumstances.
What about Tibet? You say, China is not Israel? You`re right. But also, Jerusalem is not Tibet.
responding to #2 EGB, and the other half was facilitated with the help of the LOL/UN, which is countlessly dismissed today by many in Israel when int'l law is mentioned. I would like to see Israel persevere and prosper but not if it means eternal war with it's neighbors. Sacrifices must be made now for the muddiness/cloudiness that gave risen to expansion.
if you build in non-disputed areas mr. major. But that's so boring isn't it? Much more interesting to claim new project in disputed areas right?
This is an eternal Jewish capital whether or not the rest of the world recognize it or not.
... he has decided that HE is the law in Jerusalem... in any case, where is the Pal mayor of East Jerusalem?... he hasn't got anybody to dual with, except Obama, who is so far away...
how many statements are made that are conflicting ? how can you have any process where nobody not even zionists know what a policy is ? or they know it and are deceiving the world. either way this is just dragging 2 state solution to the ground
only half of it is yours, Mr. Mayor.
The entire world does not recognize Israeli "annexation" of any territory that Israel claims beyond what it was alloyed by the UN in the partition plan plus that which it won during the war of independence. However, the world not recognizing Israeli "annexation" becuase it would be null and void in international law (after 1949 international law no longer recognizes conquest by war, be it defensive or offensive, that's why the world DOES recognize that which it won during 1948 which was not alloted to Israel in the partition plan) while correct, is pointless, because Israel never actually annexed East Jerusalem, or any other territories following the annexations of 1948 that it won but was not allotted. Read the Jerusalem Law. Nowhere does it say the law is one of annexation. This means Israeli presence is even more illegal because they have extended civilian law in occupied territory which hasn't been annexed (which would be null and void under international law anyway if they had).