Israel proceeded on Sunday with plans to build settlement units for Israelis in a highly sensitive area in East Jerusalem.
The Ministry of Housing in the occupation government confirmed that it had issued a tender to build more than 1,200 settlement housing units in an area known as "Givat Hamatos", which means that contractors can from now on start submitting their offers.
The "Safety Now" organization confirmed that the Israeli construction in "Givat Hamatos" would "severely impede the prospects for a two-state solution" to the conflict with the Palestinians, because the Israeli neighborhood will isolate East Jerusalem from Bethlehem.
Brian Reeves, from Peace Now, confirmed to the German news agency (dpa) that this step dismantles the most prominent Palestinian urban area, referring to East Jerusalem, and to the Palestinian cities of Bethlehem to the south and Ramallah to the north.
He explained that Givat Hamatos "represents a red line for the international community, just as the E1 (settlement) project is."
While E1 borders East Jerusalem from the east, Givat Hamatos borders Jerusalem from the south. Opponents say that the Israeli construction in "E1" will divide the northern and southern West Bank into two parts, and that the Israeli construction in Givat Hamatos will isolate Bethlehem.
The tender was first published in February, but since then 180 units have been added for a total of 1257 units. The last day for submitting bids will be January 18 next, just days before the change of US administration.
The move could cause a confrontation with US President-elect Joe Biden, a staunch supporter of the two-state solution. During his tenure, outgoing President Donald Trump showed unprecedented strong support for Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and his right-wing policies.
About 600,000 Israelis live in more than 200 settlements in the West Bank and East Jerusalem, which the Palestinians hope will be the capital of their future state.
