The projects sanctioned by the Planning Council include thousands of square meters to construct public and commercial buildings, the website reported.

The goal is to build a “population and settlement wall separating the south of occupied Jerusalem from the rest of the West Bank,” it stressed.

Late in February, the Peace Now NGO condemned Israel’s decision to build more than 7,000 houses for settlers in the West Bank, 3,000 of them in the area known as the E1 corridor. The NGO affirmed that the E1 plan threatens the geographical continuity and development of the cities of Ramallah, East Jerusalem and Bethlehem, and would further limit the possibility of a future Palestinian state.

The zone known as area E1 or corridor E1 has an area of about 12 square kilometers, and is a key position as it is located between Jerusalem and the Jewish colony of Ma’ale Adumim.

The eastern part of Jerusalem, occupied by Israel, is claimed as the capital of the future Palestinian state, a position defended by most of the international community and the UN.

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