Israel is planning to build 14,000 new settlement units in Jerusalem, half of which will be built in occupied East Jerusalem, Yoav Galant, Israeli housing and construction minister, said Friday.
“In response to the historic decision of President Trump, I decided that new settlements will be constructed in Jerusalem," Israeli daily Maariv quoted Galant as saying in reference to U.S. President Donald Trump’s decision -- announced Wednesday -- to recognize Jerusalem as Israel’s capital.
Israel, for its part, hopes to raise the number of West Bank settlers to an even million.
On Wednesday, despite widespread opposition across the Middle East, the U.S. president announced his decision to recognize Jerusalem as Israel’s capital.
According to Trump, the U.S. State Department has already begun preparations for the relocation of Washington’s Israel embassy from Tel Aviv to Jerusalem.
The dramatic shift in U.S. policy has sparked demonstrations on Thursday in the occupied Palestinian territories, Turkey, Egypt, Jordan, Tunisia, Algeria, Iraq and in some other Muslim countries.
Jerusalem remains at the heart of the Israel-Palestine conflict, with Palestinians hoping that East Jerusalem -- now occupied by Israel -- might eventually serve as the capital of a future Palestinian state.
During his electoral campaign last year, Trump repeatedly promised to move the U.S. embassy from Tel Aviv to Jerusalem and acknowledge Jerusalem as the Jewish state’s capital.
In April, Moscow announced its recognition of West Jerusalem as Israel’s capital, going on to voice hope that the city’s eastern half might eventually come to serve as the Palestinian capital.