Building Israeli homes between Jerusalem and Maaleh Adumim is a completely natural thing to do, and should not be taken as “anti-Palestinian,” Bayit Yehudi (Jewish Home) party head Naftali Bennett said Tuesday.

“The area in question is an indivisible part of Jerusalem. It is fifty meters from Hebrew University, and it connects Jerusalem to the Dead Sea,” he said. “Construction in this area does not require any special approval or excuse, it is a natural thing and it does not need to happen as an act of punishment for anything.”

“We are in a problem right now, the only solution to which is that the prime minister speak in a clear and uniform voice and retract his agreement to a Palestinian state,” Bennett summed up.

Bennett spoke during a guided tour of the E1 area, where Israel plans to allow the construction of new homes – to the consternation of the international community. Col. (ret.) Moti Yogev, also of the Bayit Yehudi, gave Bennett a comprehensive briefing on the area, and the two analyzed the demographic and geographic importance of E1, as they overlooked it from the Yehudai vantage point.

The E1 area connects Jerusalem to the nearby community of Maaleh Adumim and to the Gush Etzion region. Both Maaleh Adumim and Gush Etzion are part of “settlement blocs,” areas which it has been assumed in past Israel-Palestinian Authority accords will remain Israeli even if a new Arab state is established in Judea and Samaria (Shomron).

Gil Ronen assisted in preparing this report.