Netanyahu denies new Qalqilya homes ‘seven times’ as many as settlement homes

Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s office responds to the Channel 2 report of plans to double the size of the Palestinian city of Qalqilya, including the approval of 14,000 new apartments and 2,500 dunams that will be added to the city from Israeli-controlled Area C.

Or, rather, Netanyahu’s office responds to the complaint by Samaria Regional Council head Yossi Dagan that this constitutes “seven times” the amount of building approved for “Jewish councils” in the West Bank.

“This is a plan that was proposed by the defense minister [Avigdor Liberman] last year and was approved by the cabinet,” the statement says. “Since then, over 10,000 housing units were approved for planning and construction for the Jewish residents [of the West Bank], so this claim is incorrect and even absurd.”