A/HRC/37/43 Area C, about 300 of them reaching the final stage of approval. In East Jerusalem, some 3,100 housing units were advanced, about 800 of which reached the final stage of approval. 6. According to information obtained from the Office of the United Nations Special Coordinator in the Occupied Territories, during the period under review, 18 tenders for a total of 3,166 housing units in West Bank settlements were announced, as against only five tenders for 673 housing units during the previous reporting period. As at December 2017, only two of the tenders for a total of 49 units had been published and opened for bidding. No tenders were issued for East Jerusalem settlements. Ir Amim, a non-governmental organization, informed OHCHR that Israeli authorities conditionally approved building permits for 176 housing units in Nof Tzion, in the heart of the East Jerusalem neighbourhood Jabal Al Mukkaber, pending documentation proving land ownership. If approved, the expansion would make Nof Tzion the largest settlement within a Palestinian neighbourhood in East Jerusalem. 7. On 28 May 2017, the Government of Israel established a new settlement, Amihai, advancing hundred housing units for 41 families evicted from the Amona outpost (A/72/564, para. 6). The Government is expected to spend 160 million shekels on the project, including 40 million in compensation to the evicted settlers. 3 8. In October, media sources reported that Israel had approved building plans for 31 settlement units in the Beit Romano settlement in Hebron old city. If realized, it would be the first time Israeli settlements are built within the city area in 15 years. Also in October, the Israeli Civil Administration approved the construction of a new settlement of 86 housing units outside Kochav Yaacov settlement, for the settlers of Migron, an evacuated outpost.4 2. Settlement construction 9. According to data obtained from the Israeli Bureau of Statistics, the rate of construction starts in Area C settlements witnessed a decline of more than 50 per cent during the first three quarters of 2017 (1,120 units in nine months) as against 2016 (3,027 units in 12 months). In East Jerusalem, building permits were issued for the construction of 770 housing units in Gilo and for constructions in Ramat Shlomo, Pisgat Ze’ev and Ramot.5 B. Consolidation of settlements 1. Unilateral changes to the boundaries of the Municipality of Jerusalem 10. In addition to the consolidation and expansion of settlements in the West Bank, which undermine the future implementation of a two-State solution (A/HRC/34/38, para. 15), Israeli lawmakers continued to promote legislative steps to change the boundaries of the Municipality of Jerusalem. An amendment to the Basic Law: Jerusalem, Capital of Israel passed a first reading in the Knesset on 27 July 2017. 6 The bill further constrains territorial concessions of any part of Jerusalem to a “foreign entity” by requiring a qualified majority of two thirds in the Knesset. At the same time, the bill encompasses further amendments to the Basic Law that would, inter alia, allow future changes to the municipal borders of Jerusalem, including the placing of Palestinian neighbourhoods under separate municipal authorities. 11. Another legislative initiative with direct implications for the boundaries of Jerusalem is the “Jerusalem and its Daughters” bill, 7 which aims at including the settlements of Ma’aleh Adumim, Beitar Illit, Gush Etzion, Efrat and Givat Ze’ev under the 3 4 5 6 7 Yotam Berger, “Israel’s PM seeks huge budget hike for relocation of West Bank settlement”, Haaretz, 18 August 2017. Ibid. Office of the United Nations Special Coordinator for the Middle-East Peace Process, Security Council briefing 20 June 2017 (2334). On 2 January 2018, a modified version of amendment No. 2 to the Basic Law passed the second and third readings. As at November 2017, the bill was pending a vote before the Ministerial Committee for Legislation. 3