By Xinhua,
Jerusalem : Israeli government on Sunday decided to establish an interministerial committee to formulate a plan for the construction of a new Arab city in the north.
The team, consisting of senior officials from the interior, treasury, defense and other ministries, is scheduled to submit its recommendations to the cabinet by the end of 2008, said the Cabinet Secretariat in a statement.
“There is a need to expand the variety of possibilities available to the non-Jewish population,” said Interior Minister Meir Sheetrit, who initiated the move. “My aspiration is building a new Arab city in the Galilee.”
“The plan is to build a modern city where every young couple will be able to buy a house like in every other city in the world,” he added, noting that the demographic and social changes and the need to integrate the non-Jewish citizens into the Israeli economy and society entail the establishment of a new urban area for this population.
Israel has an overall population of some 7.28 million, among which over 75 percent are Jews and about 20 percent are Arabs.