[88492] Smotrich announces the establishment of a new city in Gush Etzion

Settlement Development: Turning the Gva'ot settlement into a city

In a festive event held tonight in the Gva'ot settlement in Gush Etzion, Finance Minister and Minister in the Ministry of Defense, Bezalel Smotrich, revealed his intention to promote a plan to establish a new city in its place. According to NTD Hebrew News, this is a move taking place after the first 800+ housing units were approved upon the completion of the settlement's regulation procedures, with the goal being the approval of thousands of additional housing units.

Minister Smotrich emphasized the strategic importance of the move for Gush Etzion and the strengthening of the territorial contiguity in the region. According to Smotrich, as reported in Kol HaHadashot on 🆃🅴🅻🅴🅶🆁🅰️🅼🔴, this involves the establishment of a "large city" as part of the current government's actions to strengthen the settlement enterprise.

During the event, which was attended by residents and families of the bereaved, the Minister linked the expansion of the settlement to the national sacrifice of the last two and a half years: "We are following here in the path of so many people who sacrificed their lives... so that we can be here as a free people in its land" (NTD Hebrew News).

Head of the Gush Etzion Regional Council, Yaron Rosenthal, welcomed the move and noted that under this government, there has been an unprecedented surge in development in the Gush. According to Kol HaHadashot on 🆃🅴🅻🅴🅶🆁🅰️🅼🔴, Rosenthal emphasized that in the last three years, "the Gush has doubled the number of its settlements."