Israeli authorities on Monday advanced a plan to build nearly 500 homes in a new Jewish settlement in Jerusalem that rights groups say will further sever it from the nearby Palestinian city of Bethlehem and the southern West Bank.
The planned Givat HaShaked settlement is part of a cluster of settlements on the southern edge of east Jerusalem, many of which have already been built up into full-fledged residential neighborhoods. Critics say they further undermine any hopes for a two-state solution.
