Plans to erect 2,500 modern housing units in East Jerusalem, all of them outside the old walled city, were announced here today by Housing Minister M. Ben Tov. He said that work on the first 500 units will begin in April. The new quarters will be occupied by Arab families who are to be evacuated from the old Jewish quarter inside the walled city, Mr. Ben Tov said. These families took up residence in the Jewish quarter after the 1948 war when the Jordanian Arab Legion occupied the old city, Mr. Ben Tov pointed out.
The new flats will constitute a vast improvement in living conditions for their occupants, he said. The buildings will be of a high standard with central heating and stone fronts. An additional 200-300 one- and two-family dwellings will be started in East Jerusalem next Spring.
Residents of East Jerusalem will be issued Israeli identity cards and special permits allowing them to travel to Jordan on visits, according to the Ministry of Interior. Up to now, only West Bank residents have been permitted to visit in Jordan.
The Military Government reported that it has issued 4,000 licenses for shops and other business enterprises in the Samaria and Judaea areas of the West Bank since last June’s Six-Day War. In addition, 6,089 drivers’ licenses were issued and 4,722 cars were registered in the two regions.
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.
