News Brief08:12 AM

(IsraelNN.com) Maaleh Adumim Mayor Benny Kashriel said Wednesday that he plans to spend Thursday—Independence Day—in a tent in the E-1 area between his city and Jerusalem.  Israeli officials have often discussed development in the area, also known as Mevaseret Adumim, but have refrained from beginning construction due to pressure from the Palestinian Authority and the United States.

“On the day that Israel celebrates its independence, we want to remind people that our independence is total and we are not under the policy of [US Secretary of State Condoleezza] Rice,” Kashriel told the Jerusalem Post.  If the government continues to block development of the Mevaseret Adumim area it could stifle Maaleh Adumim’s development, he said.