Israel begins settlement construction near Bethlehem

Israeli occupation authorities on Wednesday began constructing housing units in the Palestinian owned lands of Al-khader town south of the West Bank city of Bethlehem.
A statement by the coordinator of popular committee against the wall and settlements said that Israeli occupation authorities started building housing units in ” khelat Ein al-daher ” lands in order to expand the borders of Eliezer illegal settlement located in the area .
Last month a group of Jewish settlers confiscated a dunum of Al-Khader lands and planted it with olive seedlings in an attempt to create a Jewish control in the area, the statement added.
Meanwhile, Israeli bulldozers razed agricultural lands in Um- Mohamadeen area with the aim of connecting Afrat illegal settlement with Um- Mohamadeen outpost which will result in the confiscation of 200 dunum.
Settlement expansion and land confiscation in the area prevented local citizens from reaching their own agricultural lands,and create illegal Jewish majority in the area,the statement said.
Source: Petra