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Israel Planning Massive Home Building In It’s Capital City Of Jerusalem

Israel is planning its biggest construction surge in east Jerusalem in decades in a move that critics argue would cement its grip on the contested territory, further complicate any prospects for peace with the Palestinians, and badly rattle Israel’s already rocky relations with the rest of the world.

Published

13 years ago

December 28, 2012

Geoffrey Grider

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Jerusalem is the eternal capital of Israel

“The LORD doth build up Jerusalem: he gathereth together the outcasts of Israel.” Psalm 147:2

Jerusalem (AP) — Israel is planning its biggest construction surge in east Jerusalem in decades in a move that critics argue would cement its grip on the contested territory, further complicate any prospects for peace with the Palestinians, and badly rattle Israel’s already rocky relations with the rest of the world.

A construction worker works on a new housing unit in the east Jerusalem neighborhood of Har Homa. Israel is planning its biggest construction surge in east Jerusalem in decades, settlement opponents say, a move that would complicate prospects for restarting peace talks with the Palestinians. With more than 9,000 apartments in the pipeline, Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu is reaffirming his opposition to ceding any parts of the holy city to the Palestinians, who say there can be no peace accord without partitioning the holy city.(AP Photo/Sebastian Scheiner, File)

With more than 9,000 apartments in various stages of planning and construction, Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu is reaffirming his opposition to ceding any parts of the holy city to the Palestinians, a compromise two of his predecessors had accepted. The planned construction contributes to completing a ring of Jewish areas around the Arab inner core of east Jerusalem, making it more difficult to one day link it to the West Bank, which surrounds the city on three sides.

The Palestinians, who hope to establish a future capital in the holy city’s eastern sector, say there can be no peace accord without partitioning Jerusalem. They claim the construction push proves Netanyahu isn’t serious about establishing a Palestinian state alongside Israel.

Within the space of a single week, Israeli officials have moved more than 5,000 apartments in east Jerusalem close to the stage where construction can begin, including a project that would build the first new Jewish settlement there in 15 years. With some other 4,000 apartments already being built or about to start, the pace is unprecedented, says Daniel Seidemann, an expert on Jerusalem construction.

Those 9,000 apartments would add almost 20 percent to the existing stock of 50,000 apartments built for Jews in east Jerusalem in the 45 years it has been occupied.

“In the last three months, we’re looking at a surge like nothing we’ve seen in the past since 1967,” when Israel captured east Jerusalem, said Seidemann, who views the construction as an obstacle to peace.

Israel annexed east Jerusalem, with its Palestinian population, immediately after capturing the territory from Jordan and began building housing developments for Jews there. The annexation has not been recognized internationally. Today, more than 200,000 Jews live in east Jerusalem alongside some 300,000 Palestinians.

Polls show a majority of Jewish Israelis favor holding on to all of Jerusalem, and construction in east Jerusalem has not stirred passionate opposition among Jewish Israelis. Most don’t see the Jewish areas of east Jerusalem as illegitimate settlements — preferring to call them “Jewish neighborhoods” — whereas some in Israel vehemently oppose settlements in the West Bank.

Yet there is growing nervousness in Israel about the new east Jerusalem plans, with some fearing the current diplomatic woes could blossom into economic isolation as well, driven by the world community’s clear impatience with Israel’s settling of occupied land.

In the longer term, some in Israel warn, if a division is rendered impossible by filling the occupied sector with Jews, there will be no way to reach a deal on the West Bank as well. The area would be in effect absorbed into the Jewish state, rendering it more bi-national and — unless the Palestinians are given the vote — less democratic.

Palestinians have increasingly framed the issue in those terms, suggesting to Israelis that the construction runs against their own interests. “The Israeli government is making the two-state solution impossible with this unprecedented settlement building,” senior Palestinian official Yasser Abed Rabbo said this week.

Netanyahu is forging ahead — and polls show that he remains poised for reelection next month. If anything, he is currently feeling heat from a surging religious party on his right.

“With God’s help, we will continue to live and build in Jerusalem, which will remain united under Israeli sovereignty,” he said at the campaign launch event of his Likud-Yisrael Beitenu list Tuesday night.

Such tough talk aims to assuage those on Netanyahu’s right who are skeptical that everything in theeast Jerusalem pipeline will be built, noting that some construction projects were unofficially frozen in the past under international pressure.

If officials do push ahead, the 9,000 could be built within a few years. Other major construction projects in east Jerusalem were either smaller or strung out over a decade, said Seidemann. Hagit Ofran of Peace Now, an anti-settlement watchdog group, also said the pace was unmatched.

According to Seidemann’s figures on the major projects, the big push of the last decade was the Har Homa neighborhood, with 3,200 units built. In the 1990s, 2,200 apartments went up in Ramat Shlomo. In the 1980s, 11,000 apartments were built in Pisgat Zeev. In the 1970s, Israel started building the Neve Yaakov, Gilo, east Talpiyot and Ramot areas, and Seidemann estimates that around 20,000 apartments were built in those areas throughout that decade.

The Jerusalem municipality did not respond to multiple requests for its statistics on planned and actual construction

Netanyahu put settlement construction plans into high gear to punish the Palestinians for winning U.N. recognition of a de facto state of Palestine in east Jerusalem, the West Bank and Gaza Strip last month. Israel withdrew settlers and soldiers from Gaza in 2005, but still controls the West Bank and east Jerusalem.

In peace talks, Palestinians privately have accepted former U.S. President Bill Clinton’s 2000 proposal that Jewish areas of Jerusalem would remain under Israeli sovereignty under a peace accord, and Palestinian neighborhoods would become part of a Palestinian state.

At the same time, they have spent four decades watching Israeli construction permanently change the face of the city, and see every new housing project in east Jerusalem as yet another obstacle to building their capital there. Building for Arabs in the eastern sector has been limited since 1967, something Palestinians see as an attempt to stifle their presence in the city, though the current municipality denies any discrimination.

The expanding Jewish footprint in east Jerusalem also tightens Israeli control around the heart of the Israeli-Palestinian conflict: the Old City, home to the most sensitive Jewish, Muslim and Christian religious sites in the Holy Land. A hilltop compound there is Islam’s third-holiest site, revered as the place where the Prophet Muhammad ascended to heaven in a nighttime journey told in the Quran. The same complex is the holiest site in Judaism, home to two biblical temples, with the Western Wall at its foot.

Palestinians have refused to return to the negotiating table unless Israel stops all construction in east Jerusalem and the West Bank, a condition Israel rejects. Talks deadlocked four years ago.

The renewed construction push in east Jerusalem has drawn international condemnation, as have plans to build more than 6,000 more homes for settlers in the adjacent West Bank, where more than 340,000 Jews live among 2.3 million Palestinians.

Last week, the United States used unusually blunt language to criticize the settlement activity, accusing its top Mideast ally of engaging in a “pattern of provocative action” and saying plans of new construction “run counter to the cause of peace.”

The most contentious of these plans involves development of a corridor in the West Bank linking east Jerusalem and the Maaleh Adumim settlement. The Palestinians say this project, known as E1, would make it impossible for them to create a viable state because it would sever east Jerusalem from its West Bank hinterland and drive a deep wedge between the West Bank’s northern and southern flanks.

Israel shelved the project for years under U.S. pressure, but started acting on plans to build 3,400 apartments there earlier this month. Netanyahu’s aides have said construction is years away and his rivals have questioned whether he really intends to build. But the very fact that plans there are advancing has drawn ferocious criticism from Israel’s closest Western allies.

Some of the projects closer to fruition would similarly hinder access from the West Bank. Following action last week, the government can soon ask developers to submit bids to build 2,610 apartments in the Givat Hamatos project — the first new settlement to be built in east Jerusalem since 1997. Once a bid is awarded, construction can begin, though it could take months, if not longer, to reach that point.

Within the following week, officials pushed two other projects totaling up to 2,700 apartments to that same stage. source – Yahoo News

Related Topics:Home Building jerusalem palestine Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu

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Headline News

Shock at 1600: President Trump Hosts Former Al-Qaeda Commander Abu Mohammad al-Jolani At The White House In Stunning Display of End Times Politics

Published

1 week ago

November 11, 2025

Geoffrey Grider

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Abu Mohammad al-Jolani receives a hero’s welcome at White House as the red carpet is rolled out for the former Al-Qaeda commander as sanctions on Syria lifted

In one of the most prophetically charged moments in modern geopolitics, Donald Trump has opened the doors of the White House to Syrian strongman Abu Mohammad al-Jolani, the onetime head of Al-Qaeda’s Syrian branch. The same man who once had a $10 million bounty on his head has now been greeted as a world leader by America’s Commander-in-Chief. Sanctions totaling over $120 billion have been rescinded, and Syria finds itself back in the money again. What will they do with it? That’s the memo.

“I will break also the bar of Damascus, and cut off the inhabitant from the plain of Aven, and him that holdeth the sceptre from the house of Eden: and the people of Syria shall go into captivity unto Kir, saith the LORD.” Amos 1:5 (KJB)

As Bible believers, we recognize exactly what’s happening here. The nations of the world are being reshaped before our very eyes to fit the prophetic pattern foretold in Scripture. The Word of God says plainly, “For when they shall say, Peace and safety; then sudden destruction cometh upon them, as travail upon a woman with child; and they shall not escape.” (1 Thessalonians 5:3 KJB). What the world calls diplomacy, Heaven calls delusion. President Trump, a man who has long styled himself as a deal-maker, is now attempting to make peace with one who has the blood of Christians and innocents on his hands — and yet the global elites hail it as progress. That, Christian, is how the end times begin to look in real time.

Just a few short years ago, the name Abu Mohammad al-Jolani was synonymous with terror, jihad, and Al-Qaeda’s campaign to establish a caliphate in Syria. Washington listed him among the most wanted terrorists on earth. Now, he’s walking the marbled halls of the White House, shaking hands with an American president.

How did we get here? The Department of State quietly lobbied the United Nations to lift sanctions against him. The Department of War has reportedly been exploring “security cooperation.” And the media, ever eager to rewrite the narrative, now calls him a “stabilizing influence.”

The last time Donald Trump was in office, he shocked the world by moving the U.S. Embassy to Jerusalem and brokering the Abraham Accords — deals that aligned Israel with Muslim nations like the UAE, Bahrain, and Morocco. Bible believers cheered those moves as prophetic milestones. But now, Trump’s second act is different. In trying to “make peace” with a man whose past is drenched in blood, he’s venturing into dangerous spiritual territory. Remember what the Lord said about the last-days confederation of nations:

“Behold, I will make Jerusalem a cup of trembling unto all the people round about, when they shall be in the siege both against Judah and against Jerusalem.” Zechariah 12:2 (KJB)

The modern Middle East isn’t moving toward peace; it’s being maneuvered toward the final confrontation described in Revelation 16. Every handshake, every summit, every “peace pact” is another step toward that fateful day.

Trump Hosts Syria’s Al-Sharaa At White House After Sanctions Waiver

In a historic and controversial moment, Syrian President Ahmed al-Sharaa — once known as Abu Mohammed al-Jolani, the feared al-Qaeda commander — walked into the White House to meet US President Donald Trump on Monday. Once hunted by Washington with a $10 million bounty, al-Sharaa is now being welcomed as a partner, marking a stunning shift in Middle East diplomacy. The meeting aims to secure a political win for Trump, counter Russian influence in Syria, and support a fragile regional peace framework after the Israel–Hamas truce. Yet the visit raises global questions about morality, power, and realpolitik in Washington’s new Middle East strategy.

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Houthi Drones And Missiles Supplied By Iran Causing Massive Disruption That The Combined Might Of The United States And Israel Seem Unable To Stop

Published

7 months ago

May 4, 2025

Geoffrey Grider

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When a $20,000 missile fired by Yemen’s Houthi rebels can bring down a US Reaper drone worth over $30 million, the cost of war takes on a new, troubling shape.

The is a perplexing problem in the Middle East, and no one seems willing or able to solve it. The problem? Houthi drones supplied to the rebels from Iran continue to cause major damage, as recently as yesterday, Houthi drones targeted and hit the Ben Gurion Airport in Tel Aviv. Netanyahu is fuming because Trump won’t allow Israel to attack Iran, and the United States also does not appear to have an appetite to do that, either. In the meantime, Iran has free reign to wreak havoc, through the Houthi drones, on targets in Israel and on US and international shipping interests in the Red Sea.

“And Moses said unto the children of Gad and to the children of Reuben, Shall your brethren go to war, and shall ye sit here?“ Numbers 32:6 (KJB)

The Houthi missile that hit the Ben Gurion Airport this weekend was somehow able to make its way through Iron Dome and US THAAD interceptors, that’s a bad sign. The missiles and drones used by the Houthis are supplied to them from Iran who continues to wage war by proxy against Israel and the United States with seeming impunity. I am beyond disappointed with the results of the first 100 days of the new Trump administration, it’s been nothing but a self-aggrandizing, flaming, chaotic mess. Somebody needs to step up and start showing some leadership and put Iran in their place before it’s too late.

COMING TO THE CAMP MEETING? PLEASE TAKE A MOMENT TO LET US KNOW HOW MANY ARE COMING WITH YOU, CLICK TO REGISTER!!

Houthi drones drain billions from West as Red Sea chaos escalates, experts say

FROM THE JERUSALEM POST: That imbalance is now defining the crisis in the Red Sea, where sustained attacks from Iranian-backed terrorists are draining Western defense budgets and disrupting the arteries of global commerce.

Over 800 strikes have been carried out by the United States against Houthi positions since March 15, yet the barrage of drones and missiles has not ceased. As Houthi forces target American, British, and Israeli-linked ships across one of the world’s most vital maritime corridors, military and economic pressure is intensifying on the US and its allies, with no end in sight.

According to British Colonel (ret.) Richard Kemp, who commanded forces in Afghanistan and has advised on Middle East security, said Iran’s fingerprints are all over the conflict. “This is Iran flexing its muscles,” Kemp said in an exclusive interview with The Media Line. “It’s not only about attacking Israel—it’s about showing that Tehran can hurt the West, especially economically, without ever firing a shot directly.” Kemp described the Houthis as one arm of what he called the “Iranian octopus,” used to deter Western attacks on Iran by threatening both military and commercial targets.

“It’s a way of saying: if you hit us, we’ll unleash chaos through our proxies,” he said. “And the Red Sea is one of the best places to do that.”

The economic disparity between offensive and defensive action in this conflict is staggering. While the Houthis fire relatively cheap projectiles—often made with imported components from Iran—intercepting them requires millions of dollars in sophisticated Western systems.

Janatan Sayeh, a research analyst at the Foundation for Defense of Democracies, explained that this isn’t accidental—it’s strategic. “This is asymmetric warfare by design,” Sayeh told The Media Line. “You don’t need to inflict mass casualties. You just need to make your adversary bleed money.” Sayeh detailed how the Houthis now assemble most of their weaponry inside Yemen. “Iran no longer sends complete missiles,” he said. “They send parts—drones, guidance systems, warheads—and the Houthis put them together locally, based on instructions. This modular system makes interception harder and enables a continuous supply chain.”

As long as the Houthis receive weapons, training, and political backing from Tehran, none of the experts interviewed believe the threat will disappear. “So long as the weapons are coming from Tehran,” said Sayeh, “this issue is going to persist.” Kemp echoed the same warning: “Unless we start thinking of this as a global strategy by Iran, we’ll keep losing this battle—one overpriced missile at a time.” READ MORE

American THAAD And Israeli Arrow Systems Failed To Stop Houthi Missile From Hitting Ben Gurion

A Houthi ballistic missile struck near Israel’s Ben Gurion Airport, exposing a stunning failure of both Israel’s Arrow and America’s THAAD air defense systems. Flights were halted, air raid sirens blared, and at least six people were injured as the missile penetrated all layers of defense. The attack, claimed by Yemen’s Houthis, left both Israel and the U.S. embarrassed and scrambling for answers.

Now The End Begins is your front line defense against the rising tide of darkness in the last Days before the Rapture of the Church

HOW TO DONATE: Click here to view our WayGiver Funding page

“Looking for that blessed hope, and the glorious appearing of the great God and our Saviour Jesus Christ;” Titus 2:13 (KJB)

“Thank you very much!” – Geoffrey, editor-in-chief, NTEB

Headline News

Residents Of North Texas Debate Plans For The All-Muslim ‘Epic City’ 400 Acre Compound To Be Built By The East Plano Islamic Center

Published

8 months ago

April 1, 2025

Geoffrey Grider

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The East Plano Islamic Center in north Texas wants to create an exclusive Muslim enclave called ‘Epic City’ on 400 acre tract of unincorporated land in Collin County

There are dumb ideas, bad ideas, and ideas so incomprehensible they beggar description, Epic City is one of those ideas that ought never to come to pass. Now we know that not all Muslims are terrorists, but ten percent of them are. We know that there are many fine, upstanding and patriotic Muslim Americans who love this country and would fight to defend it. We also know that we live in the age of global Islamic terrorism, and building a all-Muslim supercity in the beating heart of Texas is an idea that should be shot down the first time it’s brought to light.

“And he will be a wild man; his hand will be against every man, and every man’s hand against him; and he shall dwell in the presence of all his brethren.” Genesis 16:12 (KJB)

Residents in Collin County, Texas, spent over half the day debating the merits of the proposed and so-called Epic City, and as much as I would like to think the idea was roundly rejected, I don’t think it was. Ever see those videos where hundreds of rug-carrying Muslims have descended on a busy downtown street, and with police protection, they are somehow allowed to stop all traffic while they pray to their god? Ever ask yourself how could that happen, and could that happen in my town? The answer is simple. America is a nation built on Christian principles, and while we have freedom of religion which is a good thing, a 400 acre Muslim Epic City is not. To quote DL Moody, “no, NO, a thousand times no!” to the plans for Epic City. Epic City would become it’s own town, and would govern itself according to Sharia Law. Remember the Alamo, that’s the memo.

AMERICA IS A NATION FOUNDED ON CHRISTIAN PRINCIPLES AND EVERYONE NEEDS TO READ THIS BOOK TO SEE THAT FOR THEMSELVES, CLICK TO ORDER!!

Community divided over proposed Muslim-focused EPIC City in Collin County amid state investigations

FROM CBS NEWS TEXAS: Dozens of North Texas residents are speaking out about a proposed community catering to Muslims in an unincorporated part of Collin County near Josephine after several state investigations were recently launched into the project and the mosque it is tied to – The East Plano Islamic Center.

A four-and-a-half-hour meeting at Collin County Commissioner Court Monday gave residents their first chance to share their comments on EPIC City, the proposed Muslim-focused community that includes a thousand homes, a mosque, a community college and more spanning 400 acres about 40 miles northeast of Dallas.

“We all want safe, inclusive communities that require transparency, accountability, and respect for the rule of law. EPIC City fails on all three,” one speaker said.

“To allow a new group to claim and execute a 400-acre segregated city is the height of insanity,” another speaker said.

“These individuals deserve treatment and real representation. We must advocate for an inclusive Texas,” said Collin County resident, Dylan Evans, supporting the project.

BREAKING NEWS: North Texas residents debating whether or not to allow plans for an exclusive all-Muslim compound called Epic City on 400 acres that would govern and regulate itself. This will be the birthplace of Sharia Law in America if passed. pic.twitter.com/tgcsjxesQy

— Now The End Begins (@NowTheEndBegins) April 1, 2025

Monday’s meeting comes after the state launched five investigations into EPIC City, as well as East Plano Islamic Center and investment group Community Capital Partners, which is heading the project.

Attorney General Ken Paxton is investigating CCP for potential consumer protection violations. In a news release, Paxton said the development raised several concerns.

“Under my watch, there will be zero tolerance for any person or entity that breaks Texas law,” Paxton said.

On Monday, Gov. Greg Abbott announced the latest investigation into EPIC City, saying in a statement he has directed the Texas Rangers to investigate EPIC and any affiliated entities for “potential criminal activities.”

“I think this is just adding more fuel to the fire. And, you know, I’m not happy about that,” said Texas State Rep. Salman Bhojani, D-District 92.

Bhojani is the first Muslim elected official in Texas history and said the attack on the project is a violation of religious freedom.

“I’m here to fight for every Texan’s right to religious freedom,” Bhojani said. “I’m also a real estate attorney. I know a lot of developments in North Texas that exactly mimic [EPIC City]. So, there’s nothing illegal about that. This is something that we should be protecting in the state of Texas, not demonizing it. Also, I think this is going to really increase the property value around Josephine.”

EPIC public relations representative Erin Ragsdale told county leaders that the plan is open to everyone and will comply with local, state, and federal laws.

“The idea for EPIC City came from the idea of building a master plan neighborhood that would be for all generations,” Ragsdale said. “Their vision is to build an inclusive community for everyone. I don’t think that we would be here today at this early stage if there were plans to float around for a master-planned community with a place of worship that was Christian.”

Commissioners shared their concerns in lieu of the active investigations, making the future of the project even more uncertain.

“This is not building a place of worship or attending a place of worship, it’s about the vision of building a housing development that would limit access and control housing opportunities,” said Collin County Judge Chris Hill. READ MORE

‘Very concerning’: Hundreds of Muslims gather to pray on Toronto streets

Iranian Canadian politician Goldie Ghamari has expressed concern over recent footage showing hundreds of Muslims gathering on Toronto’s streets to pray for a ceasefire between Israel and Hamas.