Like Gilo, Har Homa and Pisgat Zeev are beyond the 1967 borders, but are considered by Israel to be an integral part of Jerusalem.  Pisgat Zeev is located in northern Jerusalem, and is considered one of the largest neighborhoods in Israel, with about 41,000 residents.  The Har Homa neighborhood, which is located on a hilltop in the southeastern part of the city and looks out over the Judean Desert, was established in 1997 by the first Netanyahu government.  The establishment of the neighborhood elicited strong opposition from the US administration, opposition that has subsided over the years as more building tenders were issued by the Housing Ministry.

   As opposed to the construction plan in Gilo, which sparked the anger of the Americans, the construction plans in Har Homa and Pisgat Zeev are at a much more advanced stage--and have already been approved by the District Planning and Construction Committee.  They are now in the stage of [issuing] a tender, a moment before the actual construction starts.  A tender for building 280 apartments was already due to be issued in the coming month, but now, following the American opposition, the issuing of the tender is expected to be postponed by several months--along with tenders for building about 1,200 apartments more.  "It is completely clear that the construction in Pisgat Zeev and Har Homa will continue," said last night a senior Housing Ministry official, "and we will also continue to build throughout Jerusalem--but without being provocative and defiant.  Therefore, we should reexamine the topic, in light of the latest development in Gilo.  We should find an agreed-upon solution with the US administration for continuing to build without opposition, as has been done until today."

   Housing Minister Ariel Attias, who is in charge of the tenders, said last night to Yedioth Ahronoth about the issue of building 900 housing units in Gilo: "The involvement of the US administration at such senior echelons in planning stages is an escalation that does not achieve the purpose for which the Americans are seeking a construction freeze.  There is no immediate significance to authorizations passed by the planning committees, and there are many more stages until the project is implemented.  The sharp reactions and the involvement create a sense of needless tension."

   And on the same day that the US president voices his unequivocal opinion on construction over the 1967 borders, the cornerstone was laid for expanding a neighborhood in East Jerusalem, near Jabel Mukaber: Nof Tziyon.  About 150 residents from the first stage of the neighborhood attended a festive ceremony for the expansion of the prestigious neighborhood--which is slated to include an additional 105 housing units.  Guests from the United States also arrived, headed by New York State Assemblyman Dov Hikind, who expresses ultra-right wing opinions.

   Several dozen Palestinian residents of the nearby village also congregated at the spot, along with a group of Peace Now demonstrators.  MK Danny Danon (Likud), for his part, clarified: "Obama is a naïve person.  Apparently he still hasn't understood who the good guys and who the bad guys are in this conflict."