Palestinian resistance group Hamas on Tuesday condemned Israel's new settlement plans in occupied East Jerusalem.
On Monday, Israeli Interior Minister Ayelet Shaked said a ministerial settlement committee has approved plans to build a settlement project under the name "Givat Shaked" south of East Jerusalem.
The settlement project is located on the northwest edge of the Palestinian neighborhood of Beit Safafa, adjacent to the Green Line, and will include 700 housing units.
"Israel is taking advantage of international silence and the US cover to advance its settlement plans," Hamas spokesman Mohammad Hamada said in a statement.
He called for "escalating the resistance against Israel to prevent it from seizing Palestinian villages and holy sites."
Israeli and Palestinian estimates indicate there are about 660,000 settlers living in 145 settlements and 140 outposts in the occupied West Bank.
Under international law, all Jewish settlements in occupied territories are considered illegal.
