Israel advances plans for another east Jerusalem settlement

JERUSALEM (AP) — Israeli authorities have advanced a plan to build nearly 500 homes in a new Jewish settlement in annexed east Jerusalem. Rights groups say it will further sever Jerusalem from the nearby Palestinian city of Bethlehem and the southern West Bank. Ir Amim, an Israeli rights group that closely follows developments in Jerusalem, says the settlement plan was approved on Monday to be deposited for objections. That’s a key step in a bureaucratic process that could continue for months or years before construction begins. Critics say settlements further undermine any hopes for a two-state solution to the decades-old conflict.