Activists at Givat Hamatos
Activists at Givat HamatosIm Tirtzu

Representatives of the European Union touring Givat HaMatos on Monday were chased away by pro-Israel activists led by Im Tirtzu.

Im Tirtzu said in response: "EU representatives together with members of radical-left Israeli NGOs came today to tell us where we can and cannot build in Jerusalem, our capital city. We came to tell the EU that Israel is not a colony - it is an independent country that does not take orders from them."

Im Tirtzu added: "The Israeli government needs to send a similar message to the EU and ensure that these hypocrites stop harming Israeli sovereignty."

Israel announced plans Sunday to build 1,257 housing units in the Givat HaMatos neighborhood, part of larger plans for some 2,600 housing units in the area.

The EU responded to the announcement expressing concern, and urging Israel to cancel the housing project.

“I am deeply worried by the Israeli authorities’ decision to open the bidding process for the construction of housing units for an entirely new settlement at Givat Hamatos,” said EU High Representative Josep Borrell.

“This is a key location between Jerusalem and Bethlehem in the occupied West Bank. Any settlement construction will cause serious damage to the prospects for a viable and contiguous Palestinian State and, more broadly, to the possibility of a negotiated two-state solution in line with the internationally agreed parameters and with Jerusalem as the future capital of two states.”