<?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[Israeli Jerusalem Municipality Rejects Plans to Extend Settlement of Har&nbsp;Homa]]></title><type><![CDATA[link]]></type><html><![CDATA[<p><span class="article-details"><span class="article-detail">Tuesday February 22, 2011 17:44</span><span class="article-detail"> by Circarre Parrhesia &#8211; IMEMC &amp; Agencies</span></span></p>
<blockquote class="article-intro"><p><strong>The Israeli run Jerusalem Municipality has not approved, on Monday, plans to extend the illegal settlement of Har Homa.</strong></p></blockquote>
<p class="photo"><a name="attachment36585"></a> <a href="http://www.imemc.org/attachments/feb2011/4219624570_121cb5f582.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/feb2011/460_0___10000000_0_0_0_0_0_4219624570_121cb5f582.jpg" alt="View of Har Homa from Beit Sahour - photo by Circarre Parrhesia" width="460" height="305" /></a><br />
View of Har Homa from Beit Sahour &#8211; photo by Circarre Parrhesia</p>
<p class="article">Plans  had been submitted for approval to extend the settlement, considered  part of Jerusalem by the State of Israel, by a further 60 acres, and it  has been speculated that the rejection of plans are, at least in part, a  result of international political pressure, following the U.S. decision  to veto the Palestinian attempts to have Israeli settlement activity  condemned by the U.N. Security Council.</p>
<p>The settlement is located on a hill in the West Bank, known as Abu Gneim  in Arabic, north of Bethlehem and had previously been covered in  woodland that was supposed to be part of the protected green area around  Jerusalem.</p>
<p>In 1997 deforestation began on Abu Gneim, and although a settlement in  the West Bank, construction continued through out the recent “settlement  freeze” as the State of Israel considers the town to be an extension of  Jerusalem.</p>
<p>Har Homa is currently home to approximately 20,000 Israeli settlers.</p>
<p><a href="http://www.imemc.org/article/60694">Israeli Jerusalem Municipality Rejects Plans to Extend Settlement of Har Homa &#8211; International Middle East Media Center</a>.</p>
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