New Israeli government vows to develop West Bank tourism

JERUSALEM (AP) — The tourism minister of Israel’s new hardline government has promised to invest in the West Bank, calling the occupied area “our local Tuscany.” Haim Katz made the comments days after the new government took office. Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s new coalition has promised to make West Bank settlement construction a top priority. His coalition includes far-right settler leaders in top posts. Israel captured the West Bank in the 1967 Mideast war and has built dozens of settlements that are now home to roughly 500,000 Israelis. The Palestinians claim the entire area as part of a future independent state and consider the settlements illegal. That position is widely shared by the international community.