The Higher Planning Council of the Civil Administration will convene this Wednesday, April 10, to discuss the advancement of 26 construction plans in settlements. Most of the plans involve minor changes within the settlements, with almost no addition of housing units, but one plan is particularly significant. Plan No. 130/T/6/11 for the expansion of the Ariel industrial area eastward in an area of 324 dunams.
Expanding the industrial area eastward, on the one hand, and the establishment of the planned settlement of Ariel West, which infrastructure works for its establishment have recently begun, on the other hand, are intended to create a territorial continuum of settlements that will effectively block any possibility of development for Palestinian communities in the vicinity, including Salfit, Harres, and Kifl Harres. The plan essentially disconnects Salfit – the district town from the surrounding villages it serves.
Peace Now: “The government of Israel continues to build at an unprecedented pace in the Occupied Territories. Expanding an industrial area in the heart of the West Bank is not an Israeli interest, and certainly not a Palestinian interest. The industrial area west of Ariel does not promote economic growth, but rather harms both the Israeli and Palestinian economies alike.”