<?xml version="1.0" encoding="UTF-8" standalone="yes"?><oembed><version><![CDATA[1.0]]></version><provider_name><![CDATA[Occupied Palestine | فلسطين]]></provider_name><provider_url><![CDATA[https://occupiedpalestine.wordpress.com]]></provider_url><author_name><![CDATA[occupiedpalestine]]></author_name><author_url><![CDATA[https://occupiedpalestine.wordpress.com/author/hajarhajar/]]></author_url><title><![CDATA[Settlers Propose to Build 50 more Housing Units in E.&nbsp;Jerusalem]]></title><type><![CDATA[link]]></type><html><![CDATA[<p><span class="article-details"><span class="article-detail">Thursday January 13, 2011 16:44</span><span class="article-detail"> by Ramona M. &#8211; IMEMC and Agencies</span></span></p>
<blockquote class="article-intro"><p>Even amidst international  condemnation, the takeover of the Shepherd Hotel in East Jerusalem by  Jewish settlers continued yesterday. Settlers are now planning to build  50 more housing units, in addition to the 20 units already authorized,  in the Arab neighborhood of Sheikh Jarrah.</p></blockquote>
<p class="photo"><a name="attachment36327"></a> <a href="http://www.imemc.org/attachments/jan2011/shep11.jpg"><img class="summary-image" title="Click on image to see full-sized version" src="https://i2.wp.com/www.imemc.org/cache/imagecache/local/attachments/jan2011/460_0___10000000_0_0_0_0_0_shep11.jpg" alt="Shepherd Hotel Demolition Photo: Alternativenews.org" width="460" height="345" /></a><br />
Shepherd Hotel Demolition Photo: Alternativenews.org</p>
<p class="article">Right-wing  activists also said they plan to turn the main part of the historic  building &#8211; originally constructed by the mufti of Jerusalem, Haj Amin  al-Husseini &#8211; into a synagogue commemorating the victims of the  Holocaust. Activists see this move as all the more poignant as Husseini  was known for his collaboration with the Nazis.</p>
<p>Twenty of the housing units will be built on the garden south of the  building. The wing added during the Jordanian rule of Jerusalem is to be  demolished</p>
<p>&#8220;As we were forced to preserve the building, we will turn it into the  neighborhood synagogue and dedicate it to the memory of the Holocaust  victims,&#8221; said Jerusalem councilman Elisha Peleg (Likud ). &#8220;The  synagogue will be doubly symbolic: It will replace the house of the  mufti and it will mark the point where 78 physicians, nurses and  patients were murdered on their way to Mount Scopus in 1948.&#8221;</p>
<p>All in all, the project intends to include 70 units meant for Jews. The  plan will likely be delayed for an extended period of time, due to the  sensitivity of the matter. Although Peleg believes the proposal will  eventually pass.</p>
<p>&#8220;There isn&#8217;t a chance in the world it won&#8217;t pass, because it follows the  existing plans for the area,&#8221; he said. &#8220;Jewish construction in the  eastern part of Jerusalem will continue, because time is working for the  Palestinians, who are illegally building thousands of housing units  without permission.&#8221;</p>
<p>&#8220;There&#8217;s nothing provocative about this site, it&#8217;s not in the heart of any Arab neighborhood,&#8221; Peleg added.</p>
<p>Members of the Husseini family, who claim they own the building,  appealed to the Supreme Court, demanding the construction work be  stopped.</p>
<p>Their claims were rejected on Tuesday by a Jerusalem District Court  judge, who also removed the injunction that prevented the start of the  construction work.</p>
<p>Sheikh Jarrah is home to 3,000 Palestinians. Four families in the  neighborhood have already been displaced by settlers. Settlers literally  invaded the families&#8217; homes and took them over, without any legal  repercussions. Many of the remaining families face a similar fate, as  they have received eviction orders.</p>
<p><a href="http://www.imemc.org/article/60406">Settlers Propose to Build 50 more Housing Units in E. Jerusalem &#8211; International Middle East Media Center</a>.</p>
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