The old adage “with friends like these who needs enemies” certainly applies to the radical Israeli left-wing, which today undertook another struggle against the future of Jewish Jerusalem.

Several dozen members of the left protested planned construction in eastern areas of the capital, at present, predominately occupied by Arabs, the result of the Jordanian occupation of that area from 1948-1967.

The protest on Thursday targeted the planned construction site near Beit Orot, where the Jerusalem City Planning Board announced this week that four buildings with a total of 24 housing units will be erected in the area for Jewish families. This project represents a major boost in reclaiming Jewish properties that have been overrun by Arabs, seeking to guarantee the future of a Jewish Yerushalayim.

The protestors stated the project will lead to “irreversible damage” and hamper ongoing efforts towards peace and the establishment of the State of Palestine, which will live aside Israel in peace in the future.

Peace Now Director-General Yariv Oppenheim called such projects a provocation, which undermines peace efforts, decrying the Jerusalem Municipality’s decision.

The municipality this week also approved a Jewish housing project in the Shuafat area of the capital. Mayor Nir Barkat’s spokesmen explained the current administration remains committed to ongoing construction in both the Jewish and Arab sectors alike.

(Yechiel Spira – YWN Israel)