MIDDLE EAST: Israel stepped up settlement expansion in occupied territory last year, including at unauthorised outposts it must remove under the internationally backed peace plan, a left-wing Israeli watchdog group said yesterday.
The group, Peace Now, said housing construction at settlements had grown by about 9 per cent from mid-2004 through mid-2005. The number of houses planned for construction had also increased, it said.
"There was not only a disengagement in 2005, but also a lot of building in settlements and outposts," Yariv Oppenheimer, a Peace Now spokesman said, referring to Israel's withdrawal from the Gaza Strip that entailed the removal of 9,000 settlers.
Despite the Gaza pull-out completed last September, the number of Jewish settlers grew slightly last year from 245,000 to about 247,000, Mr Oppenheimer said. He attributed the increase largely to existing settlers having children.
Housing construction increased by much more. Dror Etkes, a surveyor of settlements for the group, said some 5,300 homes were in various stages of construction at the settlements in mid-2005, up from 4,800 in June 2004. Another 1,184 houses were planned in 2005, up from 962 in 2004, he said.
Most of the increased building has been in large settlement blocs Israel hopes to keep under any future peace deal.
But some of the construction is being done in more isolated enclaves, Peace Now said. Mr Etkes said housing construction had also increased in at least 33 unauthorised outposts.- (Reuters)