(AFP) Member of Knesset Ahmed Tibi (Joint Arab List) and another parliamentarian announced on Thursday that they will propose a bill on Sunday calling for a 10-year freeze on demolitions in Arab towns and villages, in exchange for more rigorous enforcement of planning rules by Arab officials.
"Planning, housing, land and demolition of houses are the most critical problems between the state and its Arab minority," Tibi said. He claimed the bill was unlikely to pass as Prime Minister Binyamin Netanyahu opposed it. Israeli officials say they only demolish homes that do not have the
necessary permits, but Arab representatives say those permits are almost impossible to get.