Celebration in Gaza (Archive photo)
Photo: AP
Photos show Gaza building boom
Peace Now says latest set of aerial photos reveals construction drive in areas slated for evacuation
TEL AVIV - Gaza Strip settlements slated for evacuation are in the midst of a construction boom, aerial photos taken on behalf the Peace Now movement show.
The investment of millions of shekels in communities facing evacuation in the coming months is a scandal, Peace Now Secretary General Yariv Oppenheimer says.
"It's more logical to scatter the money in Gaza's seawater than to invest it in infrastructure, hothouses, and structures slated to be razed soon," he says.
Oppenheimr says it is hard to believe such large-scale investment is funded by private individuals, and adds he suspects the Gaza Shore Regional Council may be financing the projects.
'We are grateful to peace now'
Peace Now takes aerial photographs of Gaza Strip and West Bank settlements every four months, and compares the pictures to previous photos. The movement says it was surprised to discover that a construction drive is continuing in Gush Katif despite government and Knesset decisions to remove the settlements there.
Most of the activity appears to be concentrated around the settlement of Neve Dekalim, where permanent residences are being rapidly built at two different sites, Peace Now says.
Gaza Shore Regional Council officials, however, say Peace Now's accusations make them proud.
"We are grateful to Peace Now, which spends huge sums of money on documenting construction in the settlements," Council spokesman Eran Sternberg said. "They are collecting materials that we can make great use of in the future, when we have to tell the brave story of Gush Katif"
