A new urban center — in effect a town — is to be built at the Etzion bloc midway between Jerusalem and Hebron. A decision to this effect was taken at a ministerial consultation here today.
Israel Television reported tonight that the Defense Ministry would set about putting up the first few hundred housing units within weeks. The first group of residents intended for the new town, to be called “Efrat,” will comprise immigrants from the United States, the TV said. The Peace Now movement immediately registered a sharp protest against the decision on the grounds that it would hinder the peace process.
Gush Etzion is a bloc of mainly religious settlements on the Jerusalem-Hebron road set up immediately after the Six-Day War. It is on the spot of a pre-1948 group of Jewish settlements that were overrun by the Arab Legion during the War of Independence.
JTA has documented Jewish history in real-time for over a century. Keep our journalism strong by joining us in supporting independent, award-winning reporting.
The Archive of the Jewish Telegraphic Agency includes articles published from 1923 to 2008. Archive stories reflect the journalistic standards and practices of the time they were published.
