Israeli Settlement Plan Denounced.

The Israeli government considers Gilo an integral part of Jerusalem.

The US and UN have criticised Israel's approval of 900 extra housing units at a Jewish settlement in East Jerusalem.

White House spokesman Robert Gibbs and UN Secretary General Ban Ki-moon said the move would hamper Israeli-Palestinian peace talks.

Their remarks came after Israel's interior ministry approved planning applications for the new units.

The planning and construction committee authorised the expansion of Gilo, which is built on land captured in 1967.

The land was later annexed to the Jerusalem municipality.

Meanwhile, Israeli bulldozers have demolished two homes in East Jerusalem, a further cause of Palestinian anger.

Thirty people were displaced when the first home was knocked down in the Beit Hanina area of East Jerusalem on Tuesday evening, rights groups said.

Source BBC

By Victor.