Free Republic

While the Prime Minister has yet to approve construction of a new town in Samaria for the 42 families evicted from Amona, despite his promise to do so, the Jewish Home party is already laying the groundwork for the new community. Agriculture Minister Uri Ariel proposed Sunday to set aside 70 million shekels ($18,940,000) for construction of the new town, while giving the Binyamin Regional Council, the local authority, permission to undertake the project. In the proposal, Ariel cites the government’s compromise agreement with Amona residents in December of last year, according to which a new community will be built...

One thousand new housing units for Jews will be built in the Etzion Bloc, in Judea, the Minister of Construction and Housing annnounced. Minister Uri Ariel (Bayit Yehudi) met Wednesday with the Etzion Bloc Regional Council head Davidi Perl and discussed continued construction in the region, despite international pressure not to build homes for Jews there. The minister decided, in the course of the meeting, to make sure that “meaningful progress” takes place as regards several construction plans in the region. This includes the beginning of the planning process for a new 1,000-home neighborhood in the Gvaot neighborhood in Alon...

(IsraelNN.com) MK (National Union) Uri Ariel is calling upon the government to expel PA Prime Minister Ahmed Qureia (Abu Ala) together with Yasser Arafat after Abu Ala stated on Tuesday that a Hamas attack against Israel would be “justified” following Israel’s strike in Gaza against a Hamas training camp. Fourteen terrorists were killed in the counter-terrorism strike and over 20 injured according to PA sources.