Iran Press/ Middle East: The announcement came as the prospects of a third snap election since April loomed larger, with Naftali Bennett’s New Right party leaning heavily on settlers for support at the polls.
It is said that Bennett instructed ministry departments responsible for the Israeli occupied West Bank "to notify the Hebron municipality of planning a new Jewish neighborhood in the wholesale market complex".
About 800 Israeli settlers live in the ancient city under heavy military protection amid around 200,000 Palestinians.
Sunday's statement said the planned new building project would "double the number of Jewish settlers in the city".
The move comes at a time of political turmoil in Israel after general elections in April and September ended in deadlock.
Neither Benjamin Netanyahu and his allies like Bennett nor their opponents won enough parliamentary seats to form a viable coalition.205/219
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