The number of new housing constructions initiations in the occupied West Bank increased by 123.7 percent last year, according to Israeli official government data released last Monday.

Demonstration against settlement construction in occupied East Jerusalem, May 2011 (Photo: Activestills)

The Palestinians, Hadash  and the Israeli peace movements have long viewed Israeli settlement construction as a major obstacle to peace talks, arguing that Israel is actively building on land that should be part of the future Palestinian state. Peace Now said that according to this government figures the work began on 2,534 settlement housing units in 2013 compared to 1,133 the year before. “It is official, that Netanyahu’s government is committed to only one thing: building settlements. It shows the lack of commitment to the negotiations” a Peace Now statement said. On the other hand, there was a dramatic 19 percent drop in the number of housing units built in the Tel Aviv area. In 2013 there was a 12 percent rise in the number of housing units which  started construction in southern Israel, and an eight percent rise in the Haifa area. There was only a one percent rise in northern Israel, while the Jerusalem area saw a 3.4 percent rise. In total, the number of housing units Israel has started building rose 3.4 percent compared to 2012.