An agreement was signed between the Ministry of Religious Services, directors of the Binyan Shalem project and Rav Slonim pertaining to building housing units in the Gulivnetz project in Beit Shemesh as to the identity of the supervisor of Israel Antiquities Authority excavations at that site, the daily Hamodia reports.

The two projects involved amount to some 900 housing units, 330 by Binyan Shalem and the remainder by Rav Avraham Slonim of Yerushalayim. The project has been on hold for over a half year due concerns for kevarim in the area, a project that will significantly alleviate the chareidi tzibur’s housing shortage in that area.

Unearthed findings in the area pointed to ancient burial sites and this brought the project to an abrupt halt. The solutions presented were costly, and the low income building for members of the Eida Chareidis tzibur was quickly becoming too costly.

The matter was presented to the dayanim of the Eida and over recent months the rabbonim studied the facts and reached a decision leading to the agreement in hand. It is hoped that the actual excavations by the antiquities’ officials will get underway in the coming days.

(YWN – Israel Desk, Jerusalem)