Israel Consolidates Jerusalem: The E1 Project Gets The Green Light

NUMBER OF TERRORIST MISSILES AND MORTARS SHOT AT SOUTHERN ISRAEL SINCE THE CEASEFIRE AGREED TO BY BENJAMIN NETANYAHU ON NOVEMBER 21, 2012:

UPDATE 10 am Israel time Saturday:

**There has been another incident on the Gaza border. A mob of Palestinians approached the Gaza border fence last night at around 8 pm. According to Hamas reports (which, of course, cannot be taken at face value), seven Palestinians were lightly wounded when Israeli soldiers fired at their feet to keep them away, and one was critically wounded and later died.

Whether this actually happened or not, such is the fruit of the Netanyahu-Barak-Lieberman decision to eliminate the buffer zone between Israel and Gaza: daily and nightly assaults on the border fence by Palestinian mobs that leave IDF soldiers with few options in trying to defend themselves and Israeli territory.

TODAY’S BLOG:

The police station built in area E1 many years ago. Notice there are no residential areas around it. That will hopefully soon change (picture source A Goldstein).

In the aftermath of the U.N. vote on making Palestine a non-member observer state, the Israeli government last night announced approval for 3000 new housing units to be built in Judea and Samaria.

The newly dubbed “father of his country”–more appropriately perhaps, the “father of his nonexistent country”–PLO Chairman Mahmoud Abbas, went from being euphoric to infuriated in the space of a mere 24 hours decrying the decision as “illegitimate and illegal.”

Laughably, after doing all that he could in the last weeks and months to isolate Israel, Abbas went on to warn that Israel’s isolation would be further increased “especially after the world expressed opposition yesterday to Israel’s occupation of the Palestinians . . . [and] . . . stated its support for a Palestine within the ’67 borders.” Of course, all of Abbas’ chummy new and old friends–especially those in Europe–have been quick to follow Abbas’ lead–condemning the new construction as an “obstacle to peace.”

But it turns out that it is not really the 3000 housing units that have the Palestinians and international community seeing red this morning.

Quite dramatically, the Israeli cabinet has also given the green light to the E-1 project (also known as Mevesseret Adumim).

This project, to the east and north of Jerusalem, will intimately link Ma’ale Adumin to Jerusalem. Almost two decades ago, the project was readied for construction: a police station was planned and eventually built, streets and traffic circles were paved, and streetlights were installed.

However no homes were ever built, as continuous governments of Israel, from that of Netanyahu to Barak to Sharon, to Olmert, and now back to Netanyahu have sought to negotiate peace with the Palestinians. Despite generous offer after ridiculously generous offer, the Palestinians have steadfastly refused to compromise–and for the last four years refused to even talk. During all of this time E1 was on hold.

What is the Palestinian and international complaint with E1?

That E-1 will separate Judea from Samaria–or in the words of the Palestinians “E-1 will destroy the territorial contiguity between the northern and southern West Bank”.

The following map shows just how false this claim is:

The E1 area is the tiny area in red just to the east of Jerusalem.

Note that the large light blue area just to the right of E1 on the above map is Ma’ale Adumim. E1 is not to the east of Maale Adumim, but to the west. All of the “white” area to the east of Ma’ale Adumim is mostly unpopulated land stretching all the way to the Jordan River. Building E1 in no way compromises the territorial contiguity of Judea and Samaria.

Here’s a close-up map of E-1:

The E1 project has been ready to build for over a decade, but has been constantly postponed as Israel has tried to get the Palestinians to negotiate a peace.

Here is another, more detailed map of the E1 project:

The E1 project will continue Israel's consolidation of the city of Jerusalem.

Finally, perhaps, the constant Palestinian refusal to negotiate has begun to reap what it has sown. If Israel cannot negotiate its borders with a possible state of Palestine, Israel will set its own borders.

The statement made yesterday to go forward on E1, in the face of the ludicrous U.N. vote, was especially important. If the world thinks that Israel’s sovereignty over the city of Jerusalem is up for discussion, it is mistaken. Jerusalem is Israel’s eternal capital–and will remain so.

***Addendum.

Yesterday the Vatican declared that the U.N. vote to make “Palestine” a non-member observer state was the opening salvo in a campaign to wrest Jerusalem sovereignty away from Israel, and turn Jerusalem into a city under “international sovereignty.” More on this preposterous declaration tomorrow.

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A daily feature of this blog is the recognition of those of you who support Israel by donating to this website. Each month, your humble servant places each name on this wall of support into the Western Wall in Jerusalem. Today we are highlighting Margalit of Geneva, Switzerland; Benny O. of Acapulco, Mexico; and Koila T. of Fiji:

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