Jerusalem publishes plan to boost housing for city's Arabs

Jerusalem Mayor Nir Barkat outlined a plan on Monday to give many more building permits to Arab residents, but a Palestinian official dismissed it as an Israeli ruse to cement its hold on the city.

Barkat said in a statement he had devised what he called the city's first "master plan" in 50 years to allow the construction of some 23,550 housing units in eastern Jerusalem, a part of the city where mostly Arabs live, by 2030.

Israel captured East Jerusalem in the 1967 Six-Day Warand annexed it as part of its capital, in a move not recognized internationally. Palestinians want East Jerusalem to be capital of a future Palestinian state.

More than 30 percent of 740,000 people living in Jerusalem are Arab, and most of the remainder are Jews, many of whom live in the city's Western sector.

Barkat's Palestinian-appointed counterpart, Jerusalem Governor Adnan al-Husseini, who has no real powers in the Israeli-controlled municipality, rejected the plan as insufficient to meet minimal housing needs.

"This will not solve the problems for Palestinians in Jerusalem. It will cement Israel's grip on the city and will force more [Palestinian] people out," Husseini told Reuters.

Barkat was elected mayor in November. Though a political independent, his bold pledges to maintain Jerusalem's Jewish majority have found favor with Israel's newly-elected right-wing government of Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu.

But Israel has increasingly been criticised by the United States and European allies for its recent demolition of houses belonging to Palestinians in East Jerusalem.

A report issued last week by the UN Office for Humanitarian Affairs said some 1,500 demolition orders are pending for homes built without a permit in the city and their implementation could displace some 9,000 Palestinians.

U.S. Secretary of State Hillary Clinton, visiting Israel in March, called the demolitions "unhelpful."

Barkat's office has said homes are razed when they are built without permits, while Palestinians say permits have been difficult to obtain.

Barkat's spokesman, Stephan Miller, said the new plan would address a need for more housing in areas populated mainly by Arabs. He said the number of building permits had already risen from 268 in 2006 to 346 last year.

"The mayor said that while there is no excuse for illegal construction and breaking the law, he understands that there has been poor planning throughout the city, which is why he has expedited the process and has presented this plan," Miller said.