Yesha leaders have slammed Prime Minister Binyamin Netanyahu’s decision to grant “a few hundred” building permits in Judea and Samaria prior to a nine-month freeze. They say the decision will not nearly cover the natural growth Netanyahu has promised to allow.

In an interview with Voice of Israel government radio Sunday morning, Ariel Mayor Ron Nachman said Netanyahu's proposal was "window dressing" noting that Ariel alone needs 200-300 new units a year in order to remain stable. Nachman warned that the justifications being offered today for Netanyahu's initiative are similar to the justifications made for the retreat from Gaza and other moves that failed to yield the promised results. Nachman also suggested that the American focus on a settlement freeze was designed to lead to a change in the Israeli government - with Kadima either taking the place of a coalition partner from the national camp or the outright replacement of Netanyahu as prime minister. During the tenure of former Prime Minister Yitzhak Shamir, Washington withheld loan guarantees for funding for the absorption of Russian Jewish immigration in a move to insure his defeat in the elections.