Peace Now blasts tenders for new housing

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JERUSALEM, Nov. 6 (UPI) -- Peace Now blasted the Israeli government for publishing tenders for new housing units in East Jerusalem and the West Bank on Election Day in the United States.

Tenders were published Tuesday for the construction of 1,285 housing units in two East Jerusalem neighborhoods and the city of Ariel in the West Bank, Peace Now says.

A total of 607 housing units are planned in the East Jerusalem neighborhood Pisgat Ze'ev, 606 in Ramot, and 72 housing units in the West Bank city of Ariel that weren't sold in a tender last December, Peace Now said.

"This is the true answer of (Israeli Prime Minister Binyamin) Netanyahu to (Mahmoud) Abbas. (Palestinian Authority) Chairman Abbas declared again his strong commitment to the two-state solution and Netanyahu replied with thousands of new units in settlements," a statement issued by the non-governmental organization that opposes West Bank settlements said.

"It seems that Netanyahu is afraid of the new administration that is being elected today in the U.S. and he has chosen the day of election to publish the tenders so that there will be the least public attention to his action," the organization said.